By Faith Jarrell
Student Life Editor
Those walking past Hynson Lounge in Hodson Hall on Saturday, April 6 from 8 p.m. to midnight may have heard music blasting and seen people dancing in wedding attire, as the African Student Union held a fake African wedding.
In the email sent out about the event, ASU stated, “Join us for a celebration of love, joy, and new beginnings as two souls unite in matrimony.”
The ceremony was held for seniors ASU Vice President Ketia Kamali and ASU Treasurer Mayowa Taiwo.
“We had seen the event done on many other campuses and we thought it would be cool to replicate it,” Kamali said.
The faux wedding had a DJ, who played music for almost the entire event. Afterward, the bride and groom, Kamali and Taiwo, as well as their bridesmaids and groomsmen, peers, and other members of the ASU, entered via a dance routine. The event was catered by AVI and there was also a photo booth, which Kamali said was inspired by the photo booth at the Great Fratsby event. Guests were also given fake money to throw at the bride and groom.
While the event was originally meant to take place in the Cain Athletic Center gymnasium, it was moved the previous Friday to the Hynson Lounge. According to Kamali, the reason for this was due to tabling and spacing needs that the Cain gymnasium could not fufill.
Towards the end of the event, tables were moved to the sides of the room to create a makeshift dance floor. At some point in the night, everyone gathered in a circle and danced together.
The event was an overall success, which was unsurprising considering the amount of time it took to plan.
“It took us three months to plan for the event with the organizing of the participants, the booking the room, getting catering, finding a DJ, and all the other planning that was necessary,” Kamali said. “It took us three hours to setup on the day of.”
Kamali and the ASU executive board wanted to thank everyone who came and hope the student body looks forward to more ASU events in the future.
Photo courtesy of Miranda Parrish