By Morgan Leason

United in the face of adversity, University of Maryland organizations held events to spread awareness for issues concerning the Latinx community during Hispanic Heritage Month, which runs from Sept. 15 to Oct. 15.

The Lambda Theta Alpha Latin Sorority, Inc. held an event called “Anxiety as an Ally: A Guide to Improve Interpersonal Relationships” in the Adele H. Stamp Student Union on Oct. 4, where participants discussed how anxiety affects members of the Latinx community. 

Amy Morgan, a couples and family therapist who headed a presentation at the event, led discussions with students about the intersection of anxiety and interpersonal relationships, especially within the Latinx community.

One student said that being the oldest child has brought on a lot of anxiety. Morgan understood her feelings.

“From a family dynamic perspective, you’re saying: I’m the one that’s supposed to hold it together, and so I can’t really fall apart if I need to fall apart,” Morgan said.

Sorority members at the event related to the conversations about anxiety, saying that the Latinx community is not always open to having these conversations. 

“To come to our events just creates that safe dialogue to have, which again, normally doesn’t happen in our households, which is why it is even more important to us to have these events during Latinx heritage month,” said Brenda Merino, a junior economics major and member of LTA.

Another LTA member, junior family science major Michelle Medina, said, “Within our sisterhood, we’re just very big on giving each other a home and a place of belonging, especially being at a PWI, and the Latinx and Hispanic community being so small at UMD.”

Debbie Barahona, a junior LTA member and letters and sciences major said that because of Hispanic Heritage Month, Hispanic and Latinx students are very engaged.

“Especially within our own community, people are already looking out and they’re trying to find that community for the rest of the school year, and so to be able to put on an event like mental health awareness, definitely reaches a larger audience,” Barahona said.

Another Hispanic Heritage Month event was on Sept. 23 called “In the Know,” held by The Political Latinx United for Movement and Action in Society, which took place in the Multicultural Involvement and Community Advocacy room of Stamp.

Students at the event discussed how today’s issues disproportionately impact the Latinx community, such as mass shootings, environmental injustice, and busing immigrants.

Tamara Zuniga, a sophomore history and information science major who attended the event, recognizes the challenges of being a Latina student but shows optimism towards her ability to make an impact. 

“A lot of the time, people in the Latino community don’t really focus on social justice issues because they’re more focused on trying to survive,” she said. “I have the privilege to be in a good position that I don’t have to really worry about surviving and I have the energy and the time to actually fight for things that involve us.”

Dario Leon, a senior information science major and member of PLUMAS, talked about the impact that these conversations can achieve. 

“I just feel like we’re such a huge community that we have power and we have the strength to put ourselves out there and actually have a voice.”

The University of Maryland has many more events planned to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month. Find one to attend here.

Featured Image: A tapestry hangs in MICA, the Multicultural Involvement and Community Advocacy room of Stamp in College Park, Maryland on Sept. 22, 2022. Photo by Morgan Leason.