Weekend event highlights city's cultural diversity

This Sunday, Bloomington residents and guests will have the opportunity to learn about Bloomington's cultural diversity. The fifth-annual Bloomington Multicultural Festival will showcase more than a dozen booths from local cultural organizations, offer food from Harvest Lodge Catering in Brown County and feature entertainment acts every half hour. \n"The Multicultural Festival provides an opportunity for residents and visitors to interact and learn more about the diverse cultures that give Bloomington its unique style and character," Bloomington Mayor Mark Kruzan said in a press release.\nThe festival will be held from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at City Hall's Showers Plaza, 401 N. Morton St.\nBloomington, Ivy Tech Community College and IU started the festival on the downtown square in 2002.\nLillian Casillas, the director of La Casa Latino Cultural Center at IU, supports the event's message.\n"It's an opportunity for people to realize the diversity that exists within Bloomington and to come together to celebrate it," Casillas said. \nShe said the dispersion of different cultural groups has changed since she came to Bloomington 21 years ago. \n"A lot of diversity existed through the University," Casillas said. "Now it is not just the pocket from the University -- the entire community has become more open."\nThe festival has been moved from its outdoor location downtown to City Hall's Showers Plaza to allow for more parking on Morton and Seventh streets, among other places. Also, the festival can be moved inside City Hall if it rains.\nEntertainment for the festival will kick off at 11 a.m. with the Southern Indiana Pipe Band. It will be followed by Bloomington High School North's Mariachi Band; the South African Gumboot Dancers, led by Muziwandile "Muzi" Hadebe; Samulnori, a Korean drum ensemble; a Hawaiian dance; and IU International Folk Dancers. \nEntertainment will also include a Tai Chi demonstration and a demonstration in Capoeira Angola, a martial art that incorporates dance elements, called Estrela do Norte.