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UN Day 2005: An Alternative Ending by Natalia Fateyeva & Anouchka Rachelson Kendall The
crisp air and the bright blue sky delivered the perfect backdrop for this
year’s second annual United Nations Day on October 26. Throughout the
morning, faculty and their students had been drawn to room K-413, where Dr.
David Shaheen, Dr. Clifford Young and his Model UN Club, as well as Dr. Brad
Stocker had been giving instructive presentations on various aspects of the
history and work of the United Nations. Now, it was time for the
vibrant Parade of Flags, led by a percussionist of the MDC jazz band.
The crowd was enchanted as MDC students carrying the colorful flags of more
that 65 nations filed by and circled the campus. Around Building 2,
fifty creatively decorated poster boards representing UN member states and
international agencies captured the interest of passers-by. A miniature
British scene, complete with “Big Ben” and a flowing fountain caught the
attention of many. A few tables further down, four students dressed in
the colors of the Japanese flag offered visitors rice crackers and yogurt
soda from the Far East. A line had also formed at the next table, where
two Japanese students were busy transcribing Western names into Japanese
script on colorful bookmarks. For those interested in world health
issues, the Vietnamese table featured valuable information about the recent
avian flu outbreaks. The International Student Association, the Model
UN Club, and the Study Abroad Program all welcomed students to their info
booths. In addition, students and faculty who had participated in the
“International Happiness Survey” conducted by Dr. Suzanne Austin and
Professor Marta Bret, finally had a chance to view the results in the form of
a neat bar graph at the Math/EAP table, where delicious cherry “∏”
(pie) and cake in the shape of a pyramid were served. From the Coffee
House the sounds of mysterious Oriental instruments drifted through the
air. A talented belly dancer was enchanting the audience with her
smooth movements. When the artist had completed her dance, Prof.
Fateyeva and Prof. Welch introduced a student band performing South American
music. Again the audience was mesmerized. It was almost time to leave
when someone mentioned that a discussion forum was about to take place in the
conference room. Four panelists and moderator Dr. Margarita Batlle had
congregated as part of “The People Speak 2005” event to explain their
position and answer questions concerning the U.N- U.S. relationship in the
21st century. More than 125 students and their professors participated
in a lively discussion, and their conversations continued on the way
out. A few hours later the Consul General of the Republic of Argentina
addressed MDC students in K-413. At the reception afterwards, some
students took the opportunity to exchange a few words with the dignitary, and
everybody else enjoyed the delicious food that the Student Life Department
had so generously provided. When it was finally time to go home, all
the UN Day committee members agreed that except for a few glitches here and
there, this year’s UN Day had been quite a success. Oops, we forgot
to mention that it never happened… But, anyway, here are some memorable
photos:
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