Campos kicks off the Dine With Us Lunch series

The lunch series features public presentations by members of the International Club that take place in the Student Center from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Campos said Mexico is the third largest Latin country after Brazil and Argentina.

“It’s three times the size of Texas and incorporates 31 socially and physically diverse states,” Campos said.

She talked about the history of Mexico, its civilizations, and how it was colonized by Spanish Conquistadors. She explains that the Spanish gained control of Mexico, built a new capital, and forced their religion on the native people. She displayed the Mexican flag and explained the significance and legend behind it.

She also mentioned Mexico’s historic wars and their results. An example she gave was the Mexican American dispute that led to Mexico relinquishing California, Texas, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, Wyoming, and Colorado.

Campos shared the background of holidays like Cinco de Mayo, Dia de la Raza or Race Day on Oct. 12, and Dia de los Muertos or Day of the Dead on Nov. 1 and 2. She also explained sports like bullfighting and soccer, as well as the traditional coming-of-age party for young women called quinceañera.

She closed her presentation explaining that the Mexican economy depends on trade, transportation, finance, and government.

“Mexico is one of the world’s leading producers of vanilla and silver and is known for its low labor cost and less stringent environmental regulations,” Campos said.

Upcoming events include a presentation about Nigeria on Oct. 24 by Sophia Oladimeji and Kosiso Akwanamnye and a speech about Guatemala on Nov. 28 by Dr. Gabriella Pruitt Santos and Julio Santos. The series will continue during the Spring 2024 semester, as well.