I just came back from a 21st Birthday Party of a young Cambodian girl, and I absolutely appreciated the fact that although they are dancing and partying in the land of Oz, over 10 hours away from Cambodia, they still mantain their language, dance and culture. The restaurant was shared with other restaurant guests, who to my amazement joined in the dancing, and that’s when the beauty of multiculturalism sinks in – to be able to share and express your culture anywhere without fearing consequences of intolerance.
On the 17-23 March, we have an event called “CULTURAL DIVERSITY WEEK” in Melbourne. You can find out more information here: http://www.culturaldiversity.vic.gov.au/ if you’re interested. Last year, the MPU run a programme called “HIDDEN TREASURE’, which bought together people from different backgrounds and languages, and opened a forum for multi-lingual discussion and poetic inspiration. We are currently putting together an multilingual anthology – if you’re interested in getting updates on the progress and the launch, email me at kalyan@cucumbus.com, and I’ll add you to the mailing list. I’ll also be updating the HIDDEN TREASURE section, so you can also bookmark that page.
On the subject of expressing ourselves, I will be performing some poems and songs at the St Kilda Poetry and Music Class Act next month, more info: http://www.stkmusicpoetry.org.au It’ll be a nice way to spend a lovely Sunday afternoon – music & poetry at the Botanical gardens 
Posted by Kalyan 
