Hosted by the French Club at Iowa State, Francophone Cultural Night will be held from 6-9 p.m. Friday on the first floor of the Student Innovation Center. The event will celebrate an array of Iowa State students’ cultures and heritages and introduce attendees to the various components of French culture.
“Francophone means people who speak French,” world languages and cultures professor and French Club advisor Jean-Pierre Taotel, said. “You don’t need to be French to be Francophone, but it is those who speak the language or have a French speaking background.”
Friday’s event will feature several culturally inspired drinks and desserts from Francophone regions, including Canada, Africa and France. The event will also feature trivia games, cultural booths, music and crafts. Throughout the night, students from various cultural backgrounds will give presentations about their home countries and topics related to the French language. These presentations will take place in 10 minute intervals.
“While the program will be in English, it’s open to everyone, campus-wide,” Taotel said. “The idea is to bring people to discover different parts of the world and talk about the importance of the French language, which unites 54 countries.”
The French Club’s first-ever Francophone Cultural Night will be hosted in part of the “I Will” grant, which Taotel was approved for in October in efforts to promote diversity on campus.
“We had never had anything centered about the Francophone, French speaking countries, which are all together around 54 countries,” Taotel said. “So the idea is to find students on campus who are from these countries who celebrate the diversity of the Francophone world and represent their countries while creating connections and ties for future events together.”
Taotel said he initially applied for the grant in the name of French Club but hopes to utilize it to celebrate a diverse group of cultural backgrounds and unite students from all around the world.
“We have many students from Francophone Africa and staff who are here because of their Francophone work,” Taotel said. “So the idea of this event is actually to gather them all together and say, ‘Hey, we are more than just one person, so come and let’s celebrate together and let’s show our culture to others.’”
Taotel emphasized the importance of understanding cultures outside one’s own and understanding the vastly different ways of life present around the world. Taotel believes that possessing this diverse background of perspectives can prepare students for other aspects of life, including travel and business.
“If you want to become a global citizen, you need to explore and expose yourself to different cultures which allows you to really understand your own culture itself,” Taotel said.
Friday’s event is free for all students and visitors to attend. For those with a Francophone background and who would like to represent their country, contact the French Club at [email protected].
“Come learn, celebrate and discover a new world,” Taotel said.
