Pakistani Students Host
Impressive Culture Show
Glimpses of the culture show organized
by members of the Pakistan
Student Associations (Pictures courtesy YKKB)
Irvine, CA: The Pakistani
Student Associations from USC, UCLA, and UC Irvine presented
the community with an elaborate show which highlighted the
vibrant aspects of the Pakistani culture. On April 1st 2007,
USC’s Bovard Auditorium welcomed about 900 guests;
both Pakistani and non-Pakistani, to a fundraising charity
show where all proceeds would go directly to Islamic Relief.
The show was structured with an elaborate skit with energetic
dances intertwined into the storyline.
The three schools had been organizing the event since the
beginning of this school year in the hope of raising a significant
sum of monetary donations to help the less fortunate community
in Pakistan. The production of the show was on such a large
scale that it required the involvement of about 100 participants
and volunteers from all three schools. The event was made
possible through the support of Friends of Pakistan, Your
Dil LA, along with media coverage provided by Pakistan Link,
Urdu Times LA, PakistanNews LA, Pakistan Post, Pakmusic,
Pakstop, Sunzara.com.
As the title states, the show explored the relationships
of Pakistani-Americans. It focused on highlighting the different
angles in our society and how Pakistani college students
use their heritage to identify themselves in a Western society.
The show was well received and the audience enjoyed the
humor. There were moments of high spirited amusement along
with pride-filled moments when the entire hall cheered to
video clips that highlighted Pakistan achievements in the
past and present.
Pakistani Student Association is dedicated to bringing the
community together in order to honor the culture and traditions
of Pakistan. It thanked everyone who came out to support
the show. “Your attendance is an encouraging response
to strive to organize more fundraising events in the future!”
said a PSA handout.
Speaking on the occasion, FOP President Sarfaraz Khan stated:
“…You will readily agree that in the post-9/11
period Pakistani-Americans have felt the pressing need of
having a representative and vibrant community organization
that could air their views on various social, economic,
and political issues impacting their life. Such an organization
could consistently work to dispel misperceptions about community
members, their faith, and their country of origin. What
is more, it could spotlight the multifarious accomplishments
of Pakistani-Americans so that they could be accorded recognition
as useful members of the American society. The organization
could thus serve as a bridge between Pakistani Americans
and various ethnic groups and mainstream Americans. Friends
of Pakistan has been set up with this explicit purpose in
mind. It is the voice of the community. It is the voice
of every Pakistani American.
“America is our adopted country and we feel great
affection for, and attachment to this land. Ungrudgingly,
the US has given us the opportunity to live freely and express
our concerns without any reservations. It is our duty to
serve this country to the best of our ability. Pakistani-Americans
are law-abiding citizens. They are well educated and enterprising
and have already proved their worth as true achievers in
this multi-ethnic society. In airing our concerns about
issues that impact our life we will behave in a dignified
and respectable manner at all levels of the American system…”
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