With an air of excitement, the African Student Organization at LSU kicked off its 2014 African Week with a tabling in Free Speech Plaza displaying African artifacts as well as traditional clothing worn by the organization’s members.
ASO Director of Programs Adetutu Abimbola, who was born in Nigeria, said the week will feature multiple events aimed at creating a sense of awareness among University students while developing a fun atmosphere for members and non-members alike.
Abimbola said while the organization focuses on educating students about African culture, all students are encouraged to join the organization in creating a community on campus.
Abimbola said one of the most exciting aspects of this year’s program is a movie premiere tonight in Coates Hall. Students will be the first people in the U.S. to view “Half of a Yellow Sun,” a film based on the book by African author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.
The film will premiere in the U.K. later in April, but ASO received the rights to show the movie at the event before it premieres in the U.K., Abimbola said. The movie features actor Chiwetel Ejiofor, star of the Oscar-winning film “12 Years a Slave.”
The film is set during a Nigerian civil war in the late ’60s and follows the lives of two sisters while telling a love story in the middle of war.
The African Week will present “a trip around Africa,” where five different stations will represent the five regions of Africa, Abimbola said. The main goal for this event and all the events during the week is to combat the stereotypes associated with Africa and African people, she said.
One of the biggest problems Abimbola said she has faced when encountering students is that some think of Africa as a single country and not a continent with multiple, diverse cultures.
Saturday’s “African Extravaganza” will present African culture through multiple aspects including fashion, cuisine, dance, drama and poetry, which will hopefully educate and spread awareness of a minority student population on campus, Abimbola said.
Native Nigerian and ASO President Biola Ige said as a senior, she hopes to leave a legacy of cultivating awareness when she graduates because her experiences with the International Cultural Center and the African student population on campus have had such a major effect on her life while at the University.
“When I first came here [from Nigeria], I didn’t know anybody and was looking for a place to stay, but the people at ICC really accepted me and made me feel at home on campus,” Ige said.
Ige said one of the main focuses of ASO is to create a community on campus where African and non-African people can unite and share each other’s culture.
ASO Director of Communications Yvonne Etiaka said she is confronted by students with interest and excitement for simply learning more about different African cultures. When she tells people she is from Nigeria, she is usually berated by questions about her life and her native country, she said.
“You’ll be surprised how many people will celebrate with you,” Ige said.
“You’ll be surprised how many people will celebrate with you.”

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Richard Redmann

The African Student Organization at LSU presents African Week 2014 showing students cultural diversity in Africa.