All Events
Cup of Culture
Free CeCe!
MCC Theater
On her way to the store with a group of friends, Chrishaun Reed “CeCe” McDonald, a transgender Black woman, was brutally attacked. While defending her life, a man was killed. After a coercive interrogation, CeCe was incarcerated in a men’s prison in Minnesota. An international campaign to free CeCe garnered significant support from media and activists, including actress Laverne Cox. Cox signed on as executive producer of FREE CECE!, committed to exploring the role race, class, and gender played in CeCe’s case. A discussion will follow the film screening. 1h 41m.
MCC in IV
Speak Your Truths: An Evening of Self-Expression with William 'MC Prototype' Bissic
Biko Garage 6612 Sueno Rd, Isla Vista
The MCC hosts a quarterly open mic for anyone to artistically express themselves using all creative outlets - including spoken word, poetry, music, and dance. This quarter’s MC will be William Bissic, aka MC Prototype. Though he’s been described as “Hip Hop’s breath of fresh air,” MC Prototype rarely chews gum. Having competed on two National Poetry Slam teams, performed at the world’s largest Independent Hip Hop Festival and taught workshops on writing, performing and music business, “Proto” is constantly looking for the next microphone to get in his hands, and the next way to build and educate his community through positive hip hop and poetry. As a host he is playful, as a poet he is captivating, and with any venture he, well, brings a healthy dose of that fresh air into the medium.
Race and Literature
MCC Meeting Room
This year, the MultiCultural Center is kicking off a new series to explore the issues of race and belonging through literature. This will be an interactive space for lively discussions on various theories about race, a safe space for articulating perspectives on identity and belonging which are contextualized by different authors, and an intentional time for centering the narratives of marginalized communities. Discussions will be facilitated by various faculty members, graduate students, and staff members. Readings may be suggested but are not required for attendance. This series hopes to cultivate open dialogue, and a spirit of appreciation and intellectual kinship. Dessert will be provided! All are welcome. Please contact the MCC if you’re interested in leading the conversation.
Art Exhibition
Vexed: The East L.A. Chicano Punk Scene Sal Guerena, UCSB Library Special Research Collections
MCC Lounge
Not long after the punk scene exploded in New York City in the mid-1970s, young Chicanas and Chicanos in the greater Eastside of Los Angeles began adopting the DIY (do it yourself) punk aesthetic. They expressed their anger, discontent, and feelings of marginalization through a frenzied musical style and biting social commentary. Early Chicano punk bands, or punkeros, embraced the punk rock energy and political edge to draw attention to historic and contemporary injustices. The photographs are drawn from the Chicano Punk Rock Collection in the Special Research Collection’s California Ethnic and Multicultural Archives.
