Participants at Mountain State University’s first-ever Multicultural Symposium broke bread while breaking down xenophobic barriers Tuesday evening at the John W. Eye Conference Center.

Dozens gathered to hear and learn from five panelists who represented a diverse array of ethnic and religious backgrounds. The goal was serious, but it did not preclude the introduction of humor into the proceedings.

“That was awesome,” Barbara McFadden said afterward. Each speaker told of his or her background, experiences in America and myths and misconceptions that exist regarding their respective religions, ethnicities and cultures.

Yannick Bitcheki, a native of Cameroon, spoke of the great value placed on elders in his country. He explained how his actual, lengthier last name bears the name of his great-grandfather. Bitcheki assured those in attendance that his fellow countrymen, by and large, do not live in the jungle. He added he joked to a friend that he “swam here” when asked how he arrived in America, which drew a hearty chorus of laughs from the audience.

“I believe in bringing people together,” declared Hoda Bizri, a woman who stated that she is Lebanese, Arab and Muslim and is proud of all three labels. Bizri asserted that not all Arabs are Muslims and vice versa, pointing to her native country of Lebanon as having a majority Christian population.

“We want peace, believe it or not,” Bizri said of Muslims. “Most Muslims are against terrorism.” Bizri noted that 50,000 Muslims serve loyally in the U.S. military and that some men “hijacked Islam” in addition to hijacking several jetliners on Sept. 11, 2001.

Laxmi Baraili, a woman of Nepalese descent, said her home country is small but boasts a diverse population and great natural resources. She sought to dispel myths about her country, including mandatory prearranged marriages and Nepal being part of India. Baraili said that Nepal is a “small country with so much diversity.”

India native Sudhakar Jamkhandi, an English professor, quipped that he tells his students he has been an American citizen longer than many of them have been alive. While he declared he is proud to be an American, Jamkhandi encouraged those present to also be proud of their heritage. “You are my friend for life,” he said of the Eastern perspective on a guest dining in a host’s home.

Not all Indians, Jamkhandi said, are philosophers, doctors or vegetarians. He professed a “personal philosophy of tolerance.”

“May God bless all of us,” prayed Dr. Hassan Jafary, a native of Pakistan, who referred to all of those in attendance as “the sons and daughters” of Adam and Eve.

“Take refuge with God and escape the dreadful impostor,” Jafary urged, observing the commonality of the religions of humankind. Jafary asserted all of humanity shares the same tears, the same pain and the same concern for its own children.

“They can learn about us and we can learn about them,” said Dwight Heaster, MSU’s director of international student services, about the purpose of Tuesday’s symposium. Heaster calculated MSU now represents students from 40 countries. International students make up about 20 percent of MSU’s on-campus population.

— E-mail: mhill@register-herald.com