By MACKENZIE ROGER

Staff Reporter

Hundreds of people gathered in the Oakland Center Banquet Rooms on Friday night for the second annual Middle Eastern Festival.

The Festival was planned and hosted by the Lebanese Club of Oakland University, Arab American Student Organization and the Chaldean American Student Organization.

It featured a variety of dance and song performances, some by OU students, and several by other people of Middle Eastern descent.

“We wanted to try and represent most of the cultures in the Middle East,” said host and OU senior Sarah Fram. “Our goal was to educate those who didn’t know a lot about our culture and entertain those that already did.”

Fram belongs to both the AASO and the Lebanese Club, where she is the secretary. She, along with student Zeinab Ahmad, and incoming students Judith Farah and Inas Eraqi, performed a five-song Middle Eastern medley.

Also featured was Detroit Belly Dance, and the newly-formed E’Rootha Dance Troupe, that has several OU members.

“Dancing is in our culture,” said OU sophomore and AASO president Matt Rabah. “It’s something we all grew up with. It expresses our culture.”

Big-A, a Lebanese immigrant, rapped about world hunger, poverty and politics with fellow rapper Zhao-Ski. He promoted his new record “Conscious Gangster.”

The main attractions of the night were music sets by Joe Arabbo and JAD. Each performance lasted approximately an hour, and gave attendees a chance to go on stage and dance.

OU senior Kevin Costakes attended the festival and last year’s. He said the free food and chance to experience other cultures enticed him.

“I think it was all done really nicely,” said Costakes. “The dancing was my favorite.”