The class ends with a chant, the final word “Capoeira” is yelled and the eight students and their teacher leave for their homes. What happened the hour before leaves them breathless and sweaty but with a new sense of appreciation for the martial art form Capoeira. This is just what Emmanuel Mitcham, the Program Coordinator for the Upperman African American Cultural Center located on campus, envisioned.

“We definitely want the sense of comradery to come out,” said Mitcham. Capoeira is currently sponsored by both the Cultural Center as well as the student-based organization Seahawks Empowering African American Men, which wants to bring awareness and diversity to the campus.

The Capoeira, a combination of an Afro and Brazilian dance with martial arts disguised as a dance, was one way to get the campus community involved with the organization. The group started larger, around 30 people or so but has now dwindled down to a small group who are really intense, said Mitcham.

The group began learning a new trick that night called the Meia Lua. “This is the defining kick of the Capoeira,” stated Terry Hall, the group’s instructor who has practiced the art for a little over 12 years. “I am a graduated student of it…I have the title of graduado,” Hall said.

The class, which has been meeting at Bab’s McDance Studio since March 16, is completely free to UNC Wilmington students and faculty wanting to participate in the cultural experience. “This is our first time with Capoeira and UNC Wilmington…I’m looking forward to more interactions with UNCW and the international,” said Barbara ‘Babs’ McCullen-Welker, instructor and owner of the dance studio. Events such as these bring awareness to the diversity of UNC Wilmington. Mitcham said that although the campus is a very cohesive environment there is room for improvement. By “reaching out to different communities across North Carolina,” diversity at UNC Wilmington will be attained. “When people see African Americans gathering together, people tend to shy away…now that we’ve found this [the Capoeira] we want to share it with other people,” said Josh Crossland, a participator in the event. The group has one more regular scheduled dance class April 20 at 7 p.m. and then a final presentation April 23.