The Quad was quiet on Friday, with the exception of several students conversing with each other on their way to class. At 12:40 p.m., a group of Chinese students flooded the Quad, singing China’s national anthem, carrying flags and wearing stickers on their faces. Most students were decked out in shades of red, the national color of their motherland.

One student taking pictures and participating in the mob was Ling Liang, a graduate public administration major and student at the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry.

‘This is a way for us to celebrate our love for our homeland, but also to show our togetherness as students from China,’ she said.

The event was planned by the Chinese Students and Scholars Association at Syracuse University to celebrate the National Day of the People’s Republic of China. Member Wei Zhuang, a graduate environmental science and engineering major at ESF, helped plan two different flash mob events. The group used mailing lists to reach out to Chinese students on both SU and ESF campuses.

‘We came up with the idea last Saturday,’ said Zhuang. ‘We only had it planned for a week, but a lot of students participated, and it turned out nicely.’

Before the mob started, students mingled in small groups, chatting idly and constantly looking at their cellphones to check the time. Once a sharp whistle sounded, the quiet packs of students sprinted to meet each other at the center of the Quad, shouting loudly and exchanging triumphant smiles and hugs. Passers-by stopped dead in their tracks, not sure what exactly was happening.

After taking pictures with each other, the throng of students broke into song with the Chinese national anthem, proudly holding flags in the cool September breeze. Some students sang it seriously. Others tried to tag friends with stickers bearing the Chinese national flag without them noticing. But all the CSSA members radiated a feeling of united jubilation. The flash mob on the Quad lasted from 12:40 to 12:45 p.m. The second flash mob took place at the E.S. Bird Library from 1:10 to 1:15 p.m.

At about 1:10 p.m., the carousing group of students meandered to the library for the encore performance of the flash mob.The flash mob not only allowed Chinese students to celebrate China’s national day, but also to showcase their national spirit to the rest of the campus.

‘We wanted to show Syracuse how proud we are of our culture,’ said Liang. ‘And having a flash mob was a good way to surprise everyone with a unique display of our holiday.’

ervanrhe@syr.edu

Published on October 2, 2011 at 12:00 pm

Contact Erik: ervanrhe@syr.edu | @therealvandyman