The sisters of the Kappa Phi Lambda Sorority of the Gamma Chapter kicked off their second annual Asian Awareness Week with the theme “We’re NOT ALL Chinese!” They are, by no means, the only organization at Syracuse University whose mission is to raise Asian awareness; however, we they the only Asian-interest Greek organization, thus bearing the responsibilities of demonstrating to the rest of the community of a model Asian-interest Greek life. The sisters of the Gamma Chapter initiated Asian Awareness Week in 2004, with the hopes of raising Asian awareness at Syracuse University. Staying true to the mission of the sorority, their goal is to educate their peers and the community with issues concerning Asians and Asian-Americans. They chose the week of November 16, as it includes the founding date of the Gamma Chapter. To make the week a more fulfilling experience, they collaborated with many student organizations on the events. This year, Asian Awareness Week took place from Monday, November 14 to Friday, November 18 and four out of five days were planned by the sisters of Kappa Phi Lambda. They kicked off the week with a forum titled “The Unforgotten Issues.” The four issues discussed were the Denny’s incident, HillTV/Daily Orange, HOT 97, and Racism 101; four different organizations, Asian Students in America, Hong Kong Cultural Organization, Korean American Student Association, and Kappa Phi Lambda researched each topic. A member from each organization sat on the panel to moderate audience discussion. Tuesday’s event was co-sponsored by the sisters of Omega Phi Beta and they invited a speaker, Dr. Margaret Abraham, from Hofstra University. She is the author of the book, “Speaking the Unspeakable”, and she spoke about domestic violence in South Asian communities. The workshop was highly educational and especially beneficial to the two sororities, whose national philanthropy deals with domestic violence. On Wednesday (11/16), the founding date of the Gamma Chapter, there was a Talent Show / Open Mic night, with Open Mic’s theme on discrimination. There were a total of ten acts which included a variety of open mic acts, dance, poongmul nori, and singing. They capped off the night with the cutting of the Chapter’s birthday cake and sharing it with the audience and the participants. On Thursday, a forum titled “Gaysians” was co-sponsored by the brothers of Delta Lambda Phi. The initial discussion was generated through sharing the article “Gay or Asian?” in Details magazine and other issues concerning the two minority groups were brought to the audience. On Friday, ASIA presented “The Elements of Hip Hop” where it featured the artists, Blue Scholar, B-boy battle, and graffiti art. Asian Awareness Week 2005 was concluded with the party “Fate.” Asian Awareness Week 2005 was largely successful and there were definite improvements from their first year. Kappa Phi Lambda received much positive attention and coverage concerning the week-long events; two of the forums were covered in the school newspaper The Daily Orange. A week prior to Asian Awareness Week, there also was an article on Syracuse students’ thoughts on the week as well. Theses articles can be found on their website: On Asian Awareness Week (prior to the week): click here Monday’s “The Unforgotten Issues”: click here Thursday’s “Gaysians”: click here Asian Awareness Week will continue at Syracuse University as the sisters of the Gamma Chapter will continue its tradition. Hopefully, more and more improvements will be made every year that by the time the tenth annual Asian Awareness Week takes place, it will be considered a huge campus-wide event with a largely diverse attendees, eager and willing to learn about the Pan-Asian culture. As one of the smallest chapters in Kappa Phi Lambda Sorority, the sisters of the Gamma Chapter continuously persevere with the heart, determination, and the dedication that we encompass for Kappa Phi Lambda. |
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