Mashed potatoes and pumpkin pies were replacd by a cornucopia of global foods like chicken schwarma and tamales at the sixth annual ThanksLansing. The gathering hosted by Lansing’s Refugee Development Center drew together Lansing's newest residents with locals to take part in the holiday.
Music from all over the world played over speakers while participants feasted on a non-traditional Thanksgiving menu at three large tables. Refugee Development Director Erika Brown-Binion says the event started because the RDC wanted to have a big community party to bring together long-time residents and Lansing's newest neighbors to break bread.
“It’s really important to us that the community knows who their refugee neighbors are and gets to know them on a level with food and cultural artifacts and dance and music and it makes our community stronger.”
The annual event is popular every year according to Brown-Binion. "It draws a lot of support from the community citizens and companies alike," she said.
"We believe in the fact that when you can sit down with one another and share food it brings people closer and our goal is to build bridges and to make sure our community comes closer and closer together," said Brown-Binion.
This job really changed my life and how I see my perspective on other cultures and other religions. To me now, it is all about love. If you really have love and care towards people every problem will go away.
We are very lucky in Lansing because we are a welcoming space and we have seen an outpouring of support from folks as the resettlement program gets challenged and we have seen more volunteers. Our ThanksLansing attendance is always pretty awesome.
I love ThanksLansing because people of different cultures meet together they eat they have a good time, there is also the dance show. It reflects love and rituality.
It has been really fun to just meet different people and the adults that we work with are just the most amazing students and they are so driven to learn it has been very inspirational.