The Latino Resource Center, 515 Garden Road, was the place to be last night.

With the music bumping and the crowd involved, Hip Hop Congress offered students a chance for free expression with rap and dance.

Since its establishment at NIU in 2007, Hip Hop Congress has hosted the HHC Block Party for the past three years.

The event mainly promotes a chance for multi-cultural communication by showing how dance can bring people together.

“I’m not a break dancer, but I came out today because I think the Hip Hop Congress brings a lot of culture to NIU,” said Mark Soto, senior corporate communications major. “I think that music relates to everyone whether they perform or not.”

As a few performers offered personalized raps, the crowd got into it as the rappers talked about everything from being a student to politics.

Everyone was just out to have a good time and eat the pizza, corn, wings and chips available.
During the event, Rebecca Silva, Miss Latina NIU 2009, gave a quick introduction for the event and encouraged people to socialize and enjoy the festivities.

Silva is a recent member of the Hip Hop Congress, so when she’s not representing her crown, she’s breaking it down on the ground.

“For people who aren’t comfortable dancing yet, they need to just not think about it, but just do it,” Silva said. “Anyone can have a good time dancing.”

Students had a chance to network with other cultures even if they didn’t realize they were doing it.

The Hip Hop Congress Block Party was one of many Latino Heritage Month events hosted at the LRC over the past month.

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