On Dec. 1 at 7:30 pm, over 250 attendees from the Colby-Bowdoin-Bates league (CBB), Lewiston High School and local communities in Lewiston gathered in Memorial Commons in Chase Hall to witness the first CBB International Fashion Show and to celebrate the diverse cultures around the world. Two comperes of the show, Yun Zhang ’24 of Changsha, China, President of the Bates International Club, and Karam Sutham ’25, Social Media Coordinator of the Bowdoin International Students Association, from Bangkok, Thailand, announced the start of the show.

The event, hosted by the Bates International Club and supported by the Bates Center for Global Education, Bowdoin International Students Association, Colby International Club, Bates Africana Club, Bates Asian Students Association, Bates Caribbean Students Association and Bates South Asian Students Association showcased cultures and costumes from various regions including Afghanistan, Angola, Bangladesh, Bengal, Burundi, Cameroon, China, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Ghana, Greece, Gujarati, Hong Kong, India, Jamaica, Mongolia, Palestine, Peru, Rwanda, Somali, Taiwan, the Mossi people from Burkina Faso and the Yoruba people of Southwest Nigeria.

The idea originated from members of the Bates International Club, who sent official invitations to Bowdoin and Colby in early November, including an in-person conversation with Bowdoin International Students Association board members in Brunswick.

Joanne Du ’24 from Bowdoin emphasized the meaningful nature of the event, stating, “When we think about cultures, foods usually come to mind. It is simple to cook food in the student dorm’s kitchen and share it with friends, but an event like this fashion show, allowing people of different cultures to present their costumes, needs a lot of extra effort and is extremely meaningful. We don’t wear these clothes in our everyday lives—they are for banquets, weddings and important events, so all the models today spent an extra amount of time for preparations and being here. This action itself is already very meaningful!”

“It’s fascinating that lots of students from Colby, Bowdoin and Bates participate tonight in this event to celebrate the variety and richness of cultures,” Associate Dean of Students for International Student Programs James Reese said. When asked whether the CBB International Fashion Show will turn out to be an annual event, Reese said: “ I actually do think this is going to be an annual event. We have about 30 models tonight, but the number of people that originally signed up for modeling is actually more than this number, which means people in these three schools want a platform to present their cultures.” 

“I am wearing an Indian costume today,” said Mehammad Zayd ’27, who was impressed with the number of opportunities that Bates offers to celebrate different cultures. “This is my first semester at Bates. I have already seen the international cultural showcase,  the Diwali and the fashion show tonight. This is something out of expectation.”

Eva Wu ’25 of Bates said she was wearing “a traditional cloth called Qi Pao and representing Chinese culture. There are bamboo and plum flowers on my Qi Pao. They have special meanings: bamboos represent modesty, while plum flowers represent being resilient in hardship because plum flowers blossom in winter,” she said.

“I would love to do modeling next year. I am a first-year international student from Mexico City at Bowdoin, but I didn’t pack any Mexican costumes when I came here. Next year I will bring some. I’d love to see more Latin American representation in the future!” said Fabiola Barocio Prieto ’27.

A highlight of the event was the inclusion of six students from Lewiston High School who came to Bates and to present their costumes. “This is my first time visiting Bates, even though Lewiston High School is right next to Bates. I love the campus. Everyone I met here tonight is so kind, supportive and caring,” Diane Nyiranduhura, a junior at Lewiston High School, said.

“I was very nervous before I went on the stage, but everything went great!” Esther Radjabu, a senior student at Lewiston High School, shared. Both Nyiranduhura and Radjabu presented Rwandan clothing in the fashion show. 

The event concluded around 9 p.m., leaving many Bates students eager to see it happen again in the future.