Togetherness resounds during 2023 Lunar New Year

BY MAUREEN LINZAGA Social Media Editor

Guided by values of togetherness, tradition and prosperity, the Lunar New Year is one of the most honored holidays in Asia and around the world.

Due to the recent Half Moon Bay and Monterey Park mass shootings that disproportionately affected those of Asian descent, the aspect of solidarity in the community has resounded this year more than ever.

Long Beach State is no stranger to its cultural significance. The diverse student body, faculty and staff participate in Lunar New Year festivities both on campus and in their homes.

“By sharing different cultures, it helps other people connect and notice similarities, which then creates a deeper connection amongst each other,” said Lynette Lanh, a student assistant at the Earl Burns Miller Japanese Garden.

Unlike the Gregorian calendar which consistently starts on Jan. 1, the lunar calendar this year began on Jan. 22, and is celebrated for 15 days until the next full moon appears.

“There’s definitely more thought, effort and meaning behind [Lunar New Year],” said Kylie Yam, an undeclared freshman. “We clean the house before the new god comes in as well as driving away the bad luck from the previous year.”

Although commonly called the “Chinese New Year,” the lunar year is also celebrated in different ways across Asian countries including Japan, Vietnam, Indonesia, South Korea and more.

As for food, Yam mentioned the Cambodian dessert “Numkom” as a staple part of her family’s new year dinner, next to

BY KADIE GURLEY Arts & Life Editor

No matter what kind of music you listen to, there’s a high chance that its foundation is based on and influenced by Black culture.

From Elvis Presley to Bad Bunny, many of the most popular music artists of our time created, or in a few cases, covered music that was originated by Black people over the years.

Genres including rock and roll, blues, jazz, soul, funk, rap, gospel, reggae and spiritual are just some styles of music that originated and were cultivated by African Americans.

Black Americans’ impact on music runs deep when the history of slavery at its core is taken into account. Many sought out music as a way to step away from the shackles and burdens of the torture they faced during those times.

Forcibly coming to the United States from Africa, spoken word and singing spirituals served as a prayer to unite the African tribes. These were the type of religious folksongs that are most closely associated with the enslavement of African people in the American South.

According to the National Park Service, singing played an important role in the quest for freedom.

Music is deeper than a genre. It digs deep into pain, triumph and culture.

“Every tone was a testimony against slavery, and a prayer to God for deliverance from many servings of fruit, roasted chicken and duck.

Since Yam is half Mexican and half Cambodian, she had moments of insecurity regarding if she was “Hispanic or Asian enough,” but she finds that abiding with the cultural community during the holidays helps.

“I’ve always felt in touch with my Asian roots because I was raised and spend the most time with that side of my family, but participating in Lunar New Year and TLC (Thai, Laos and Cambodian) New Year definitely reassured me,” Yam said.

A notable on-campus Lunar New Year celebration is held at the Earl Burns Miller Japanese Garden where the students and Long Beach community can experience more of the Japanese traditions.

Known as the “New Year Sekku,” it is one of the garden’s many returning cultural events after COVID.

The event facilitates community con- nections through activities such as calligraphy tables where attendees can learn how to write in Hiragana or Katakana, opportunities to create Origami, as well as the handing out of red envelopes and goodies for students and families to take home. chains,” Frederick Douglass once said. This influenced the birth of rhythm and blues along with jazz years later. Just like spirituals, blues included work songs, field hollers and chants and became known as folk during the 1860s. African Americans from the Deep South rhymed simple narrative ballads sharing the pain, torture, discrimination and other challenges they faced.

“Here at the garden, everyone believes it’s important to reach out to various communities, as it is important to have social connection and a sense of belonging,” Lanh said.

According to the Library of Congress, the first recording of jazz music was in 1917, “Livery Stable Blues” performed by the Original Dixieland Jazz Band, and was a best-selling record. Being the “first” was problematic as it is a recording of a white band performing an African American genre.

Ultimately, blues transformed into a new musical element called rock and roll. Many refer to singer Elvis Presley as the King of Rock, but the first pioneer of rock and roll came from singer-songwriter Chuck Berry.

Originally from St. Louis, Missouri in the 1950s, the town he resided in was segregated. Berry joined a band with one of his friends and often played jazz and pop music in Black nightclubs around St. Louis.

Many believe his song “Maybelline,” released in 1955, is the first acclaimed rock and roll hit based on its technical rhythm and blues beat, hints of country guitar, Chicago blues flair and narrative storytelling.

Other genres including soul, R&B, hiphop, reggae, reggaeton, funk, gospel, rap and more of the top-charting music today, go all the way back to Black culture.

The foundation set by Black Americans revolutionized music today and is expanding globally.