The University of Michigan World's Fair
Throughout the twentieth century, the University of Michigan, through the Office of International Student Affairs, held a campus-wide World's Fair. Students from all countries were able to erect booths and celebrate their heritages. This served as an opportunity for students to learn about the world and about their peers. Each year the Fair was celebrated on campus.
In 1966, Ann Arbor Mayor Wendell E. Hulcher, alongside the International Affairs Committee of the University Activities Center of the University of Michigan, assisted in the formation of a city-wide International Emphasis Month. The World's Fair acted as an "opening event" for the month, with a major dinner "recognizing the many students holding leadership positions in international programs" as a closing event.1
That year, Mayor Hulcher released a proclamation outlining the goals of the World's Fair and the International Emphasis Month:
"WELCOME to the University of Michigan's 1966 World's Fair, sponsored by the University Activities Center and the International Students' Association.
VISIT the many booths featuring displays of national products, arts and crafts, pictures, clothing, and other items.
ATTEND the international variety show which offers and enjoyable first-hand look at the cultures of other countries. Performances will be given at 7:30 and 10:00p.m. Friday night and at 7:00, 9:00, and 11:00p.m. Saturday in the Union Ballroom.
ENJOY yourself. We hope that this event will help to foster international friendship through better understanding."
Pamphlets for the World's Fair often included quotations from various countries and cultures:
"BROTHERHOOD, according to the dictionary, is the relationship of two male persons having the same parents--or the members of a fraternity or organization. I don't think the dictionary goes far enough. To me brotherhood isn't just something you were born with or something you join. It's something deep inside you, like love or loyalty, that reaches out to all the world and everybody in it--men, women, children. Just the thought of brotherhood has a sobering effect on me, for it reminds me that I am only a transitory member of a very large family called Humanity." - Bellamy Partridge
1. Wendell E. Hulcher papers, 1959-1971, Box 10, Wendell Elsworth Hulcher, 1922-1999, Bentley Historical Library, Ann Arbor Michigan.