February 18-28 | Wesleyan University | Fisk Hall
The Fries Center for Global Studies is thrilled to be hosting the eighth annual Power of Language observance! Originally organized as a multi-day conference, POL has since evolved into a week-long series of events organized around International Mother Language Day (2/21), which honors the Bengali Language Movement and all mother languages around the world. At Wes, POL is intended to encourage and honor multilingualism and second language acquisition. This week-long programming will be the fourth annual of its kind, and is supported by the Fries Center for Global Studies, Office of International Students, and Office of Student Academic Resources.
The Bengali Language Movement aims to encourage the power in speaking one's native tongue, having begun in East Pakistan, or East Bengal, as a movement to speak Bengal over the federally imposed Urdu. Opposing linguicide and cultural assimilation, citizens of the region fought for the recognition of their native tongue over the course of several years, eventually leading their declaration of independence on March 26th. In 1971, with the end of the liberation war, Bangladesh achieved recognized independence. UNESCO declared February 21st International Mother Language Day in 1999 to commemorate their fight, and the grave importance of preserving and proliferating the multilingual and multicultural nature of our world.
This year, POL will be hosted through Wednesday, February 18th to Saturday, February 28th.
We welcome any all event submissions to showcase the many forms that cross-lingual communication can take, while also highlighting the importance of linguistic empathy in our increasingly multicultural and interconnected community– both on this campus, and in the world. If you're interested submitting an event proposal, visit this link to fill out the form by February 6th!
If you have any questions, please reach out to Amalie Little at alittle@wesleyan.edu.