UTD Choir Trip to Border Promotes Healing, Unity

01.29.2020

UTD choirs perform at El Punto, Ciudad Juarez.

The UT Dallas Chamber Singers and University Singers recently visited El Paso, Texas, and Ciudad Juárez, Mexico, on a trip aimed at uniting people through music.

“We wanted to offer friendship, peace, respite, and dignity to our brothers and sisters living closest to the U.S.-Mexico border,” said Dr. Jonathan Palant, associate professor of instruction in the School of Arts and Humanities. “Be it residents, asylum seekers, new immigrants or those reeling from a recent mass shooting, we know that music has the power to lift spirits and unite hearts.”

UT Dallas students and Dr. Nils Roemer, interim dean of the School of Arts and Humanities, volunteer at The Opportunity Center for the Homeless in El Paso.

The UT Dallas musicians participated in two concerts — one in Ciudad Juarez and one in El Paso. Singers from both of those communities joined the UTD choir, as well as Dallas’ Credo Community Choir.

Palant said the weekend was a success, resulting in new friendships and a common bond.

–Phil Roth