As students cope with the realities of a college experience during the global coronavirus pandemic, the Multicultural Resource Center (MRC) continues to offer an accessible social outlet for students of color at Binghamton University.

Named “Culture Chats,” the events are weekly to biweekly. Although last year they took place monthly in the University Union, they are now being held entirely online via Zoom. Culture Chats were introduced to BU through a collaboration with the MRC and the Student Association’s (SA) vice president for multicultural affairs in 2019. The events, organized in collaboration with Richie Sebuharara, assistant director of the MRC, were first structured as monthly lunches where students of color could speak with faculty and staff, network for opportunities, gain insights and share their experiences. Each Culture Chat is typically set with a specific topic, which students discuss in a free-flowing conversation.

Following this semester’s social distancing guidelines, the Culture Chats are being held over Zoom. Sebuharara noted how this new setting has raised slight difficulties for participants.

“The Zoom calls are definitely different because there’s a different type of dialogue that happens when everyone is in the same room,” Sebuharara said. “However, the Culture Chats are still a productive space for students and staff to connect. We look forward to having people attend and feel comfortable to speak and learn and teach, not just learn from others, but teach others as well. The more conversation that we’re having, the more dialogue we’re having, the more we can have different tangible things that we can now turn into … the next step or an action plan.”

The new virtual format of the Culture Chats has also affected turnout. According to David Hatami, SA vice president for multicultural affairs and a junior double-majoring in political science and business administration, the events, although made to be more intimate, still attract small numbers of participants.

“I know last year there were usually 12 participants in attendance at maximum, with about six students at each Chat,” Hatami said. “We’ve definitely had reduced numbers this year, but at every Chat we see more and more students come and participate. I think we had four or five students in the last one.”

Nonetheless, the events have retained the impactful and bridge-building objective that Sebuharara and Hatami intended, as Briana Lopez-Patino, an undeclared freshman, said about her experience.

“The Culture Chats establish a very comfortable setting, so I was totally fine talking about topics we might have different opinions on,” Lopez-Patino said. “I attended the ‘Latinx in Higher Education’ [Culture Chat], and it was very helpful during this climate, as I haven’t met many other Latinos. Also, I learned that definitions are not concrete and are flexible to each person’s identity, and I felt very comfortable and secure with my identity.”

Khadijah Butt, an undeclared freshman, had not heard of the Culture Chats previously, but expressed her interest in participating in the future.

“I would like to participate in Culture Chats, mostly because I love having the opportunity to learn about different cultures,” Butt said. “Not only that, but sometimes we can relate to our struggles and, as someone who grew up in a white majority town, I think it would be good for me to meet more people of color.”

Sebuharara talked about the relevance the chats have to our current environment.

“This is an opportunity for people to kind of have space to talk about how they see things going today,” Sebuharara said. “We have an election obviously coming up soon, so what are some of the things that could come from that, what could happen, and just trying to be ready to see what types of responses and action plans people maybe have in play. Or just talking about how all of this is impacting people and their mental health and seeing how they’re going through their day-to-day.”

Although the pandemic has forced Culture Chats to move online, Hatami maintains that the chats are a helpful force during a difficult time for many.

“Beyond that, I just hope for Culture Chats to grow and become a more regular aspect of students’ lives,” Hatami said. “I know the pandemic has caused a lot of loneliness and uncertainty in the overall [BU] community, so I hope Culture Chats can be used as a vehicle to alleviate some of those barriers.”

The next Culture Chats for October will be held on Thursday, Oct. 8 from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m., Tuesday, Oct. 13 from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. and Thursday, Oct 22 from 12 p.m. to 1 p.m.