Lusophone Fair
The
scope and vitality of Luso-Brazilian Studies at UGA was underscored
at the recent “Lusophone Fair: a Celebration of the Portuguese-Speaking
World”, which took place on
Herty Field on March 28, 2003. Bringing together more than ten
local and international guest speakers, 15 different UGA programs
and outside organizations, and the active participation of over
150 students enrolled in Portuguese classes at UGA, the Lusophone
Fair served as a meeting place for a broad range of people with
a shared interest in the Portuguese-speaking world. UGA students
studying Portuguese were directly involved in the creation of
the event through semester-long group projects focusing on specific
countries of the Lusophone world. The results of the students’
research and presentations were showcased at each country’s
“cultural booth” during the Fair. Two roundtable sessions,
one examining the Brazilian immigrant community in Georgia, and
the other the notion of a global Lusophone community, provided
an opportunity for more focused discussion. The Fair also hosted
a diverse artistic program that included Brazilian percussion
music, Capoeira (an Afro-Brazilian martial art), Luso-Brazilian
music by the UGA Brass Ensemble, and Angolan theater (with the
participation of UGA students). Organized collectively by both
faculty and graduate students in the Portuguese program, the Lusophone
Fair was, in fact, the culmination of a week-long program of events
that included a film series and a Main Library exhibit devoted
to the Portuguese-speaking world, (http://www.libs.uga.edu/mediadept/news/lusophone/index.html
for a virtual tour). According to the director of the Lusophone
Fair, Assistant Professor Robert Moser: “This
was a truly educational event in the sense that it brought together
students, scholars, administrators, and members of the general
community with a genuine interest in learning from each other
and sharing diverse, yet remarkably common experiences.”
Departmental
Web site http://www.rom.uga.edu/lusophone_fair
Columns http://www.uga.edu/columns/030414/news13.html
