Multiracial Heritage Month
Multiracial Heritage Month at UMD takes place every March, and is one of the first in the nation. We spend the month honoring the identities, stories, and histories of mixed-race, multiethnic, and transracial adoptee individuals. Scroll down for a full list of events! Follow @umdMICA on instagram to get the latest updates and announcements!
"I AM: Agency, Action, Autonomy"
This year's theme is about self-determination in terms of identity ("I get to decide who I am") and activism ("we get to decide who we are''). By boldly stating "I AM" we defy the pressure on multiracial and transracially adopted people to qualify and explain our identities in fractions and percentages, or using 'but's and 'however's. Multiracial and transracially adopted people are whole and full representations of all their respective identities - full stop. We also highlight agency, action, and autonomy to describe the fearsome power of multiraciality and transracial adoptees as agents of change and activists working towards building a more just world.
2024 Events
Multiracial and Transracial Adoptee Cultural Center: Let's Test Out Furniture!
Date/Time: March 5, 11:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Location: Grand Ballroom, Stamp
Sponsor: The Division of Student Affairs
I Am: Agleam Portrait Sessions
Date/Time: March 5, 11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
Location: One Button Studio, Stamp
Sponsor: MICA
Keynote Jinan Deena: Food, Culture, and Identity Workshop
Date/Time: March 6, 5:30 – 6:30 p.m.
Sponsor: MICA
Keynote Jinan Deena: Meet and Greet
Date/Time: March 6, 7:00 – 8:00 p.m.
Sponsor: MICA
I Am: Agleam Portrait Sessions
Date/Time: March 6, 11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
Location: One Button Studio, Stamp
Sponsor: MICA
I Am: Agleam Portrait Sessions
Date/Time: March 8, noon – 3:00 p.m.
Location: One Button Studio, Stamp
Sponsor: MICA
Multiracial Biracial Student Association Grad & Alum Panel
Date/Time: March 14, 7:00 – 8:30 p.m.
Location: MICA's Cozy Corner (B0203 Stamp)
Sponsor: Multiracial Biracial Student Association (MBSA)
In honor of Multiracial Heritage Month, MBSA will be hosting our usual general body meeting with the addition panelist speakers—UMD alumni and graduate students will be joining us in our discussion about navigating our multiracial identity as well as sharing some of their own experiences!
Queer Tea V
Date/Time: March 14, 7:00 – 9:00 p.m.
Location: MICA's Cozy Corner (B0203 Stamp)
Sponsor: Sigma Lambda Gamma National Sorority, Inc.
Looking at the intersections of being multiracial and queer, this event will promote dialogue about these intersections and allow attendees to meet others with similar identities.
Transracial Adoptee Ice Cream Social + Meetup
Date/Time: March 15, 3:00 – 5:00 p.m.
Location: the MICA Lounge (1120 Stamp)
Sponsor: MICA
Come grab a scoop, hang out, and meet other transracial adoptee Terps at the second annual Transracial Adoptee Social! Undergrads, grads, staff, and faculty are all welcome. Not sure what a transracial adoptee is? Come learn!
Transcending the Lines Vol. 1: Writing/Photo Workshop for Multiracial and Transracial Adoptee Students
Date/Time: March 25, 5:00 – 7:00 p.m.
Location: TLC Workshop & Meeting Room (2105 McKeldin Library)
Sponsor: MICA
A creative event where students will learn about different art mediums to express their identities as multiracial or transracial people. The experience will be co-facilitated by alumns.
I Am: Agleam Photo Gallery and Reception with Alumni Artist Vi Le
Date/Time: March 25, 2:00 – 3:30 p.m.
Location: The Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center Upper Pavilion
Sponsor: MICA
Join us for the unveiling of "I Am: Agleam", a photography project by alumni Vi Le '23 featuring Multiracial, Multiethnic and Transracial Adoptee UMD community members. Le's series of portraits focuses not on physical features, but instead highlights simple moments, the little joys, and warmth and humanity of the community.
Queering Multiracial Identities
Date/Time: March 27, 4:00 – 5:00 p.m.
Location: Zoom (Virtual)
Sponsor: Office of Diversity & Inclusion - Bias Incident Support Services
Multiracial identities are often framed as a mixture of binaries, choosing to occupy space in one or an other racial culture. This virtual session will start with the poem 'Am I Brown Enough?' and proceed to a facilitated dialogue inviting participants to share their stories of racial variance and advocating for visibility and care. We will end our time together with developing action steps for administrators, staff, and students to advance multiracial and transracial adoptee support systems and access at UMD.
Registere here.
Mixed Monologues Open Mic Feat. TOTUS Spoken Word Experience
Date/Time: March 27, 6:00 – 8:00 p.m.
Location: MICA's Cozy Corner (B0203 Stamp)
Sponsor: TOTUS Spoken Word Experience
Come join us for an open mic (poets, storytellers, singers, rappers, musicians... all are welcome!) exploring the Multiracial Heritage Month theme of "I AM: Agency, Action, Autonomy." Feature performances by TOTUS Spoken Word Poets. Food will be provided!
Ethnic Studies Now: Building Solidarities with Critical Mixed Race Studies, A Panel Discussion
Date/Time: March 27, 4:00 – 5:30 p.m.
Location: McKeldin Library Special Events Room (6137)
Sponsor: MICA
Join faculty from Ethnic Studies fields across campus to connect on shared and unique history, impact and barriers—especially in relationship with the growing field of Critical Mixed Race Studies. Light refreshments provided.
Let's Build Together: Cross Cultural Community Building
Date/Time: April 2, 7:30 – 9:00 p.m.
Location: Charles Carroll Room (on the 2nd Floor of Stamp)
Sponsor: MICA's Multiracial and APIDA Student Involvement areas
Join Multiracial Student Involvement and APIDA Student Involvement for a crossover event to link our two heritage months. We ask you to bring your sense of agency, action, and autonomy to the table to work in collaboration to build a community together. Learn about creating cross cultural solidarity in community building through modeling with LEGOs.
Vi Le ’23 (she/her)
I Am: Agleam (2024)
Digital Photography
“for in their full humanity and in moments of joy, they stand agleam.”
Vi Le earned her BA in Psychology from the University of Maryland, College Park. She partnered with the office of Multicultural Involvement and Community Advocacy (MICA) to create this photo series featuring multiracial, multiethnic, and transracial adoptee members of the University of Maryland community in honor of Multiracial Heritage Month (March) 2024.
Click here to view the whole gallery
Artist Statement
It is in the simple moments that we share, where we can find the joy and warmth in our humanity. Through this series of photographs, I hoped to encapsulate these sentiments with each model, recognizing that the heart of community resides within the people and their humanity. Through this collection, I hope to inspire us to bask in these everyday moments and to serve as a reminder that the beauty of joy surrounds us even in the most simple aspects of life.
Multiracial is an umbrella term for people with more than one racial identity or heritage. It can also be referred to as mixed-race. For example, someone with Asian and Black heritage might identify as biracial, which is under the multiracial umbrella.
Multiethnic specifically refers to people with more than one ethnic identity, who may also have one or more more racial identity. For example, someone with Japanese and Bangladeshi heritage would be multiethnic, even though they only have Asian racial identities. On the other hand, someone of Thai and Irish heritage would be both multiethnic and multiracial.
Transracial adoptees are individuals who have been adopted into a family with a different racial identity than their own. For example, an Asian individual adopted into a white family, or a white child raised by a Black family.
