OROVILLE — Exhibiting some of the interesting features of area cultures was the theme at Saturday’s Butte County Multicultural Showcase, which offered attendees bursts of color and artistry at the Oroville Convention Center.
The air inside the facility was rich with tempting aromas of ethnic foods such as egg rolls, macaroni and cheese, fried fish and fresh tortillas, while three food trucks outside offered tacos, barbecue and Jamaican cuisine for sale.
Passion Chue, youth programs coordinator at the Hmong Cultural Center of Butte County, stood resplendent in ornate traditional Hmong dress as she hosted an informational table. The group recently moved from rented quarters along Feather River Boulevard to a 4½-acre property it owns 1704 Oro Dam Blvd. West in Oroville.
“We were able to get our own land. The rent (at the former facility) was getting high,” she explained.
Now, the center has plenty of room for community members to use for gardening, and the on-site building hosts support groups to address mental-health issues among youths.
“We had an outreach at Oroville High School (Friday),” Chue said, “and we’re going to Las Plumas High School (Monday).” She added that many students said they didn’t know the organization existed and weren’t aware of its offerings, such as summertime camping trips for youths.
“We have a lot of resources. We have peer support with one-on-one sessions,” she said.
Chue showed off some Hmong items on the display table, including a qeej, a flute-like musical instrument. “We use this for spiritual callings during funerals,” she explained.
Nearby were colorful cloths called paj ntaub — translating to “flower cloth” and suitable for use as a baby wrap for transporting the child. A bamboo basket, into which users could deposit freshly harvested vegetables, sat next to the cloths.
Chue said dancing is “a huge part of our culture,” and the cultural center has an 11-member dance troupe — Ntxais Hnub Qub — that competed in an event at the Sacramento New Year in late November. She said that while the group did not earn a place finish, “it got them ready for the next competition.”
Hmongs aren’t the only group the center welcomes, though — “we try to serve the Hmong community because we don’t have many resources for the Hmong community,” Chue said. However, the center “welcomes other Asian subgroups” such as Mien, Thai and Lao, and has one Filipino student who attends.
Array of cultures
Nearby, wearing ornate Mexican cultural attire, Gridley resident Lucia Chavez and her second-grade daughter, Aymar, showed off dresses affiliated with Dia de los Muertos — the Mexican “Day of the Dead” celebration.
It’s not a spooky or macabre celebration, contrary to how some people may perceive it, but rather one that evokes memories of dead relatives and friends and the warm relations living people had with them.
Khristina Kelley of Oroville, of North Valley Catholic Social Services, said Lucia Chavez was dressed as a catrina, a traditional “skull” representation associated with death for Dia de los Muertos.
“We asked Lucia if she’d wear the customary style of dress” for the event, Kelley said.
Chavez and her daughter wore extremely colorful dresses as they left the stage during the pageant of cultural dress.
“The culture of Mexico is amazing,” Chavez said. “It is very important to celebrate Dia de los Muertos.”
The Multicultural Showcase also included dance performances and an art show.
