Celebrating International Mother Language Day

Every year on February 21st, UNESCO commemorates International Mother Language Day. Originally an initiative of Bangladesh, this day highlights the importance of preserving native languages as a cornerstone of identity and communication. 

Join us in a celebration of language and heritage at this multifaceted social hour event. The formal program will begin at 5:30pm and feature an array of diverse activities for attendees to enjoy, from Bangla dancing, to discussions from professors of language from area universities, poetry readings in Ukrainian and American Sign Language, and bingo featuring words from the Tamil language.

Featured Artists, Organizations, and Speakers:

Olena Boryshpolets is originally from Odesa, Ukraine. They say you can leave Odesa, but Odesa will never leave you. Thus, Olena brought Odesa with her when she came to Pittsburgh and is ready to share this incredible city with all of us. Olena is a poet, writer, journalist, actress, cultural manager, author of the short story book Ukrainian Detox and the book of poetry Orpheus and Eurydice in New York. Olena is also a member of the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine, a co-founder of the public organization Creativity Without Borders, and a member of PEN America.

Shaheen Dil is a reformed academic, banker and consultant who now devotes herself to poetry. She was born in Bangladesh and lives in Pittsburgh. Her poems have been widely published in literary journals and anthologies. She has published two full-length books of poetry, Acts of Deference (Fakel 2016) and The Boat-maker’s Art (Kelsay Books 2024.) Her book Letters to My Younger Self is forthcoming from Gyroscope Press in 2025. Shaheen is a member of the Pittsburgh Poetry Exchange, the DVP/US1 Poets, and the Porch Poets. She holds an AB from Vassar College, a master’s degree from Johns Hopkins University, and a Ph.D. from Princeton University. Additional information is available on her website: shaheendil.com

The City of Pittsburgh’s Office of Immigrant and Refugee Affairs (OIRA) within the Mayor’s Office was established in January 2022, to build on the work started by the Welcoming Pittsburgh Initiative in 2014. This initiative was guided by the Welcoming Pittsburgh Roadmap, 37 recommendations and emerging priorities identified by 40 leaders from diverse sectors and over 3,000 community members.

Kelir Books creates bilingual Tamil resources #forallkindsofTamilar and promotes access to Tamil resources that are representative and inclusive of the complexities of socio-cultural identity in today’s world. https://kelirbooks.com

Lori Levin is a computational linguist specializing in syntax and morphosyntax, especially for low-resource languages. She is the co-founder and co-chair of the North American Computational Linguistics Open Competition.

Gang Liu is a professor at Carnegie Mellon University, where he researches classical Chinese poetry, Chinese as a Foreign Language (CFL) pedagogy, and technology-enhanced learning. He is also the author of the bestselling children’s book series Loulou ting’s Adventure in Ancient Chinese Mythology.

Pittsburgh Chinese Cultural Center is a non-profit organization that promotes the awareness of Chinese culture and appreciation of cultural diversity, facilitates assimilation of Chinese immigrants into the Pittsburgh community, and supports relations between Pittsburgh and China.

Mj Shahen served as the American Sign Language Poet Laureate of Allegheny County. She is currently an ASL Coordinator and an instructor at Community College of Allegheny County.

Guilherme Yazbek is a Brazilian poet, scholar, educator, theater director, and actor. He is the president of AddVerse, an artist collective housed within the University of Pittsburgh’s Center for Latin American Studies. The purpose of AddVerse is to highlight the importance of conversation, solidarity, and the inclusion of underrepresented writers in order to develop collaborative artistic, cultural, and intellectual projects.

About Your Visit: 

The in-house restaurant Cucina Alfabeto is open for dinner from 5-10 pm. Please visit Open Table or call 412-435-1111 to make a reservation.