Tickets still available for Soul Food Dinner at USU

The theme for tonight's Soul Food Dinner, "More than Just a Color," celebrates ethnic diversity, both locally and around the world. 

Tickets are still available for tonight’s Soul Food Dinner in the TSC Ballroom at Utah State University. An annual event sponsored by USU’s Black Student Union (BSU), the event kicks off Black History Month and promises a unique cultural experience, complete with interactive entertainment and a home-cooked Southern meal.

“Our menu is a hit this year,” said Jasmine Lee, USU’s Black Student Union president.  “We have Southern fried chicken, Southern baked macaroni and cheese. We have collard greens. We also have sweet potato pie and banana pudding. So Southern foods galore. And it’s really great banana pudding!”

The evening’s entertainment includes break dancing, singing, hip-hop dancing, poetry, a fashion show and more.

“It’s going to be a lot of fun,” said Lee. “There’s going to be trivia, and it’s going to be very interactive with the audience. We want to engage them, to make sure everyone feels welcome, everyone feels a part—like they’ve done something.”

The theme for the Soul Food Dinner, “More Than Just a Color,” reflects the diversity among members of the BSU and within the larger community.

“Anything that you would consider ‘black’ will be encompassed in this event,” said Lee. “We don’t want to keep Black History Month as an American thing. We want to reach out overseas because our members are from all across the world.”

Comprised of students from the United States, the Caribbean, Africa, Jamaica, Somalia, Trinidad, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Martinique and many other regions, the Black Student Union emphasizes the importance of having a world view when discussing ethnicity. The organization also accentuates the role black history plays in American history.

“You can’t have American history without black history because it did happen,” said Lee. “Yes, we tie it specifically to a racial and ethnic group, and that’s just a title, but it is American history.  It’s just as important to learn about Dr. King, Malcom X, Rosa Parks and Thurgood Marshall as it is to learn about our Founding Fathers, the men who walked on the moon. I think without that, we’re missing a key part of our history.”

The Soul Food Dinner begins at 6:30 p.m. this evening and is expected to last until 8:00 p.m. Tickets are available at the door for $11 for students and $12 for nonstudents. Each Tuesday throughout Black History Month, the BSU will host discussions about important figures in black history from around the world. The public is welcome to attend. More information about the Black Student Union and its upcoming activities is available on <a href=”https://www.facebook.com/usublackstudentunion/”>Facebook</a> or by emailing <a href=”mailto:[email protected]”>[email protected]</a>. 

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