On Nov. 15, members of the NYU Abu Dhabi student community packed into Al Diwan and dispersed around the West Plaza in support and anticipation of the Africa Global Student Interest Group’s first ever Afro Fest. In the past, celebrations of Africa's diverse traditions and people were hosted under the name Africana Night, which brought cultural ambassadors, national dignitaries, students and faculty together under a central theme — last year’s theme was Umoja, meaning unity in Swahili — with the hopes of breaking down cultural stereotypes about African countries and people.

Despite its name change, Afro Fest stayed true to its roots in past Africana Nights, and was the result of months of planning by the organizing committee: Otelo Reggy-Beane, Class of 2021, Thais Thomas, Class of 2021 and Waad Abrahim, Class of 2022. However, Afro Fest also took steps in a different and unique direction, one that aimed to represent the growing diversity of the student body and their expanding connection to the African diaspora; not just the African continent.

“Given the increasing number of representation from the African diaspora, we decided to broaden our scope to be representative and inclusive of them,” said Reggy-Beane.

Odera Dinobi Ebeze, Class of 2019, who was also involved in organizing Afro Fest, went on to add that in comparison to Africa Global’s past Africana nights, this year “we were very much focused on integrating both people from the continent and people outside the continent as well … adding value to the people who are from the Caribbean, people who are African American, etc. Integration was a very big motivation.”

Participants and audience members were encouraged to engage with the event’s overarching theme — the African diaspora — through the variety of cultural displays and cuisines, the Afro-heritage map as well as the array of student-led performances. With a goal of showcasing the African diaspora in an inclusive and cohesive manner, the event’s hosts took time before the start of the festivities to define the concept, “the movement of Africans and their descendants to various parts of the world”, to contextualize its historical ties to both the Trans-Atlantic and Arab Slave Trade and to highlight the lasting internconnectedness between the diverse individuals and cultures that compose the diaspora.

The night opened with a variety of cultural displays in the West Forum. Student ambassadors of different cultures sported their national dresses and set up stalls that exhibited their nations’ unique artifacts, foods, histories and cultures. Representing 24 nations from the diaspora and the continent, the displays seeked to promote interaction and experiential learning within the student body. Segun Omole, Class of 2021, highlighted that the displays are an important means for participants to appreciate and share their diverse national identities.

“With all the diversity on campus it’s very easy to just say that, you know, we are surrounded by so much culture, but I don’t think that on [a] daily basis we actually showcase our individual cultures a lot … on a day specifically like this I think that it’s this space you’re given to just bring Africa and bring the African diaspora here in all its max, to the fullest. So yeah, I will always be happy to take that kind of opportunity to show what it really is to be from where I’m from: Nigeria,” said Omole.

After the cultural displays, Afro Fest was brought inside Al Diwan for the Walk of Nations, where students from both the continent and diaspora took to the stage to represent their own nation and its achievements to the crowd. Throughout the night, there was an assortment of different performances, including a poetry recitation, a rap single, a multilingual rendition of Adele’s Hello, a fashion show, a dance workshop and a series of group dances.

In one of the many memorable moments of the evening, Reggy-Beane led the crowd in a group workshop on the Cupid Shuffle — a popular early 2000s American line dance. Students also had the chance to see South, West and East African participants battle it out on the dance floor as they executed their choreography and exposed the audience to the musical differences between regions.

The night ended with the last of the student choreographed group dances, which saw Caribbeans, continental Africans and African Americans together on stage. All of the dance forms culminated in one final show in which everyone was called to the dance floor after a few hours of food, music and good vibes.

“This was amazing … till now yeah I’m gassed, I have been dancing and cheering people on. It was really, really nice,” said Omole of his experience at Afro Fest 2018.