Welcome to Chinatown
In this present economy, a person has to save as much money as possible. They can’t do what they used to before, like go to the movies.
Well, there is an alternative to that and it’s called “A Night in Chinatown,” held every Tuesday and Thursday night at 7:00 p.m. in the Olson Auditorium in Academic Building IV. It began on February 15, 2011 and will end on March 24, 2011.
It is run by the 16 students of Zhejiang Police College, near Shanghai, China, who are studying here at the College of Criminal Justice for the 2010-2011 academic year.
The idea for the movie night came from Qiuming Yui, visiting scholar and advisor to the students. The planning process began in May 2010 while they were preparing to study here. Each student had chosen 16 movies that they liked and then from there, they narrowed it down to 10.
“We want to choose typical movies in China, like documentar(ies) and love stor(ies), but not only kung fu movie,” said Yingyu Le, one of the organizers of the festival. “And since we are criminal justice majors, we even have a movie about the social problems in China. We hope that these 10 movies can show a part of our culture.”
The students from China did a tremendous job of putting this event together, and it is one of the best events that has been done at this university.
For more information about “A Night In Chinatown”, you can contact Shu Cang at (936) 661-6254 or at sxc025@shsu.edu.
Here are a list of the movies that will be shown at “A Night In Chinatown”:
March 3: Beijing Bicycle
March 8: Shower
March 10: Eat, Drink, Man, Woman
March 22: The Equation of Love and Death
March 24: Dream Weaver: Beijing 2008
The Africa You Never Knew
Dr. Samake
When a person hears of Africa, they often perceive poverty, diseases and death. But what many people do not know is that Africa is rising as a prominent player in the world.
Last week, Macki Samake, Ph.D., professor of linguistics at the University of Bamako in Mali, gave a keynote adress about the independence of Mali and how it is progressing towards becoming an emerging power in the world. The presentation was part of a week of seminars in the history department at Sam Houston State University.
He explained how important kings died during the struggle for independence. He also said that women played an important role in the struggle, even though they did not fight in the struggle. But instead, the women’s role was to provide moral support and to cook meals and to replenish the men that fought in the struggle.
“Democracy is important in order to succeed,” Samake said. “Mali has taken that road and will be a great nation.”
The keynote address was presented in room CO90 in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences Building to an audience of faculty and students.
The presentation was impressive because people learned about a country that is a model for the rest of Africa. Samake showed that with persistence and patience, Mali will be a great nation.
Now I’ve Seen Everything
by Cheval John
A little of Panama was featured at the Latin Jazz Concert last Saturday night. The concert was headlined by Danilo Perez of Panama and the “Perez Trio” which featured bassist Ben Street and drummer Adam Cruz, both who from the New York area.
The first half of the concert, the SHSU symphony orchestra played with the trio along with a couple of jazz musicians from Woodcreek High School.
The second half of the concert, the SHSU Jazz Band, under the direction of Aric Schneller, professor of music at SHSU, played along with the trio. In the final rendition, pianist Luis Marin of Puerto Rico, who played on Monday night, joined in the festivities.
The concert was the finale of Festival Inspiracion. I personally enjoyed it because of the presentations that was given, the improvisation concert on Wednesday that featured the works of Jesus Moroles, a sculptor from Corpus Christi, Texas in which the musicians played music from the works and the SHSU dancers created choreography for the performance.
Will we see another festival inspiracion? Only time will tell.
Take advantage of the opportunities that are given to you
By Cheval John
Dr. Pruitt - Courtesy of SHSU Department of History
“Look, if you had one shot, or one opportunity to seize everything you ever wanted one moment. Would you capture it or just let it slip?” Eminem
Everyone who are fans of Eminem knows this quote from the song “Lose Yourself”. This song rings true for a lot of reasons and unfortunately, some miss that chance. Whenever things don’t go a person’s way, they try to find excuses on why they did not succeed, but in reality, they miss their opportunity.
In my experience, I have notice that some black individuals who make excuses on why they are not progressing. It seems to me that they are using slavery as an excuse. Yes, I understand the issue of slavery and I wish that it did not happen, but they should not use it as a crutch. Also, it seems like they are many obstacles that are in the way that are keeping them from being successful, including being raised in a single parent home.
People like Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, W.E.B. DuBois and many others fought and risked everything for equal rights for future generations. Different acts including the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was passed through Congress that gave Black Americans the opportunity to succeed. But it seems like those individuals are not taking advantage of it.
While I realize the challenges many of these individuals face in their pre-existing circumstances, I also see others who have had the same background and took advantage of the opportunities to get out of the situation instead of making excuses.
For instance, Bernadette Pruitt, Ph.D., associate professor in the History Department, had a difficult childhood. It seemed as if nothing was going her way, including with the education system, but she graduated from high school and came to Texas Southern University. Not only did she earned her Bachelors and Masters degree, but also earned her Doctorate from the University of Houston. She exemplifies how it does not matter how you grew up, you have to work hard to get what you want.
The reason why I am writing this is because I am an African American and I understand the pain and suffering of being stereotyped by others. I understand the circumstances and the pain of slavery and at times, it infuriates me, but at the end of the day, it already happened. It is time for everyone to take advantage and go to college to obtain a degree so that you can be successful in life and set an example for those who are looking up to you because like it or not, you are a role model to those that will be taking the same path.
Do what you love and the money will follow
Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life. –Confucius
By Cheval John
When a person enters college, their goals and aspirations are to graduate with their degree and get that job with the high salary. But what if those individuals get that job and realize later that it does not fulfill them?
Carol Shaw (on the left) assistant to the Dean of the College of Business Administration (COBA) at Sam Houston State University, believes that when a person finds the job that they love, it will be their masterpiece.
Shaw graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Home Economics (now Family and Consumer Sciences) from Sam Houston State University in 1974. Her first job was as a secretary at the Texas Department of Criminal Justice in the Ferguson Unit. In 1978, though she loved her job, fate intervened.
“I went for an interview at the accounting department in the College of Business”, said Shaw. “The chair at that time was Rita B. Huff and she was in need of a secretary because school was about to start in a week”.
She got the job and has been with the college ever since. In her current position, she organizes the COBA Career Fair and recently, in partnership with the Career Services, conducts mock interviews with area companies to prepare students for job interviews.
The advice that she shares with those that are in college:
And for those that are graduating:
Start at the bottom, then work your way to the top and in the end it will be worth it.
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