Latino College Students Fight for Dignified Representation

By D.T.

Columbus, GA –CHISPA is a student association from Columbus State University, whose name stands for Columbus Hispanic Association. It seeks to celebrate Latino diversity and connect the young members of the organization in a safe space through cultural and social events, as well as collaborations with other student groups at the university.

CHISPA was consolidated as an association and was at its most active era during the years before 2019. However, with the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the student group suffered a decline which extended into the years where students were able to return to take in-person classes.

This situation negatively affected the networks or connections already built among the university's Latino community, which is immensely significant, since the most active members of the group had already graduated by then, and the new students were not getting involved due to a lack of activity and visibility.

With this situation in hand, the former president of the association described her vision of rebuilding the Latino student community with a very clear meaning of the group’s purpose, stating, “CHISPA is a place where Latinos can come and be themselves. Our goal is to make them feel at home.”

Additionally, the former president believed that bringing visibility to the vast diversity of Latino cultures, and including everyone equally was one of her main vision points for the future of the group.

Knowing that family or home, diversity and inclusion are all fundamental pillars of Latino cultures, the path seemed to be straightforward, specially considering the large percentage of students at the university who belonged to the community.

However, both the former and current presidents of the organization found that financial support for the organization was scarce.

Both said that despite having a variety of ideas for events they could organize, they did not have the support they had hoped for and, therefore, their events were reduced to the already familiar annual bailes during the second half of the year, one event for National Hispanic Heritage Month and some collaborations with other university associations such as movie or painting nights.

When asked about the possible consequences this lack of substantial and material support could have on young Latino university students, the former president stated that, if they had the necessary support, the association could become something transcendental, since it provides a feeling of being at home for its members, and especially considering that they often feel that their Latino heritage is dismissed or underappreciated. The former president affirms, “There is a need for connection, that is the importance of the association. It could lead to creating opportunities or scholarships and connecting with the society of the city itself.”

The problem of connection is not new to the Latino community. The current president relates within the student group, despite the large number of Latino students, they are not usually active in student life and do not participate in events. The president states, “It’s because we don’t relate to those events, we are not represented in those events and are not seen in those events”.

It is not difficult to imagine why the Latino community would not get involved in spaces where they do not see themselves represented, much less if this representation, if it existed, was merely a minimum indispensable representation.

The former president added that one of the biggest challenges she faced as a leader in the Latino community was having a voice, “I struggle with saying, ‘Hey, we need help, what can we do to get it? A lot is asked of us as an association, but where is the actual support?’”

The Latino community has a major problem that can be identified in various sectors such as sports, society and, in this case, academic. The members of the community are not active enough, they do not participate or engage enough, and they do not execute their right to raise their voice and ask their leaders to address their most important needs.

If we seek to improve the conditions of the community, it is necessary for its members to begin to exercise their citizenship actively and seek support from each other and from others.