On April 23, 2021, the Meredith International Association (MIA) is set to host its annual fashion show. For the second year in a row, this event will be virtual, meaning more people can participate. The deadline to submit a video is April 4; information about submitting can be found in the March 29 Halo Happenings email. The Meredith Herald recently interviewed MIA president Kezia Wafula, ‘21, to speak with her about her perspective on the event.
This year, the theme for the fashion show is “Cultural Heritage.” When asked what this meant to her and why she chose this theme, Wafula responded, “We cannot define cultural heritage without talking about the languages people speak. Cultural heritage is not a fixed thing, it is something that migrates from place to place by the people who interact with it.” This theme allows for creativity in many forms through dance, poetic works and clothing, just to name a few.
COVID-19 has changed the way that the show is held, but the Meredith International Association has not given up. Wafula said, “The fashion show last year was different — obviously because of COVID-19, we couldn't come together to celebrate. However, we made something so beautiful that will be shown in future fashion shows.” Wafula spoke to The Herald about the importance of community when putting together projects such as the fashion show. She said, “It was amazing to see the school come together despite what was happening at the time.”
The fashion show is an exciting event at Meredith enjoyed by many in the community. Wafula expressed her favorite entries from past years. The entries include modeling, poetry, dance and even song. She said that in the past “the fashion show has had a diverse group of talented people involved in the fashion show.” The fashion show is open to everyone on Meredith's campus who wishes to participate — this includes, students, alumni, faculty and staff. There are also contributors from outside the Meredith community; Wafula mentioned that in the first show, there were contributors from North Carolina State University that performed a routine originating in Bangladesh.
There is still time to submit a video to the fashion show before April 4. Videos can be submitted using this form or directly to Kezia Wafula at kpwafula@email.meredith.edu. In the words of Wafula, let’s “see how many countries we can take off the world map” and represent in the Meredith International Association Fashion Show.
To watch the fashion show on April 23 at 10 a.m., tune in either to the official Meredith College Instagram page or the MIA Instagram or Facebook pages.
By Alyssa Byrum, Contributing Writer, and Rachel Van Horne, News Editor