The Futuro Latino Club is celebrating international week and we asked club president Crystal Dominguez and sponsor Luisa Karimighovanloo about the club and her heritage.
NWN: What are some of the things your club helps Latino’s with?
Dominguez: In our club we talk about the different college opportunities that there are for Latino students, and to encourage everyone that there is a way to make it into college if we really look for it.
Karimighovanloo: We do university visits; we also provide informational breakfasts for the parents of students to know how the American educational system works like; we do food sales; kind of showing students whats out there for them to get involved in.
NWN: What do you like most about your culture?
Dominguez: I like the whole idea of family and being together. My whole family is very close in the literal sense we all live less than a mile from each other.
Karimighovanloo: I would fall under the Hispanic culture and I enjoy the Spanish language as well as the friendliness of the people.
NWN: What is a misconception about your culture?
Dominguez: A misconception about our culture is that as a Mexican we all end up in gangs or drop out of school and don’t get an education. But this is very wrong and Mexicans and all other Latinos do in fact go to school and get an education to make something of their lives.
Karimighovanloo: I think that some of the misconceptions could be that people who speak Spanish come to the US through not being documented and that the larger percent [of people] are field workers or they clean homes. There’s nothing wrong with having that kind of profession but a lot of Latinos are also found in other professions from the medical field to the engineering field.
NWN: Why do you feel it is important to have this club?
Dominguez: It is important to have this club because it is a place where Latinos can make a difference, not only for themselves but for the world as well. And that is what can make a difference in the life of a Latino teenager that was told they could not make it to college. This club says that we can and will make it.
Karimighovanloo: [It is important] to provide a sense of pride and to maybe inform students about the historical advancements that a lot of Latinos are bringing to the US.
NWN: What’s your favorite meal?
Dominguez: My favorite meal has to be Tamales de Maiz which is a corn Tamale with sour cream on top.
Karimighovanloo: There are too many [foods] to name, but I do enjoy Tamales and in my country of Spain we have Tortilla de Patatas which is kind of like a potato omelette.
NWN: What is the holiday you most look forward to?
Dominguez: I look forward to September 15. For Mexico it is our independence day.
Karimighovanloo: The ones I most look forward to are the U.S. ones that school is out but a lot of holidays [that we celebrate] back home are in the Summer.
NWN: What are you most proud of about the club?
Dominguez: I am proud of all the volunteer work we have gotten to be apart of and of all the college visits we have been able to have to inspire our Latino kids.
Karimighovaloo: I am most proud of how many students have been really invested in this club. We also offer Spanish literacy programs at the ELL Parent center and I have a lot of the students come and volunteer two hours of their time to help small children learn Spanish.
