Located in Queens, also known as the “World’s Borough,” it is quite common to hear a myriad of languages blend together on the spacious Queens College campus. One place to witness such an exchange of culture and language is down in the lower level of the Student Union building, where the Anime Club is located in room LL-22.
With over one hundred clubs on campus, QC is a melting pot of culture and student activities. Clubs range from the Caribbean Student Association to the South Asian Student Association and many others. While many clubs at QC are centered around a single culture, identity, or religion, the Anime Club brings together students from various different majors and walks of life interested in a broad spectrum of popular media.
The club has gained many new members since in-person classes picked up, now reaching over 150 members on their Discord. It’s on their Discord server that the club has kept active and thriving. It is a place where club members play popular games together such as Valorant and League of Legends as well as watch movies together.
Jacqueline Horowitz, known as Jackie, who is majoring in graphic design, has been the president of the Anime Club since last semester. When The Knight News spoke with Horowitz she was quick to give credit of the club’s success to her predecessor Omar Onofre, who graduated with a degree in Economics.
“Jackie’s doing a great job on keeping the club alive. I visit every now and then and see the club room is still just as active, if not more, with all the new members that have joined,” Onofre said.
Damilola Babalola, a pre-med student who is also on the men’s track and field team, just joined the club this year. “I practice track for a couple of hours and then on days where I finish enough work and people are hanging out, I sometimes meet up for a little bit,” Babalola said.
Steven Mercedes Corporan, a senior double majoring in Elementary and Early Childhood Education and East Asian Studies, was only five years old when he came to the United States from the Dominican Republic. As a first-generation student, he joined the Anime Club back when it was still known as the Sci-Fi/Animation Club.
He spoke to The Knight News and said that it has been on campus since the 1990s and that you’ll see all types of people in the club, describing it as a great place to hangout, meet other people, and make new friends.
The QC Anime Club is located in Student Union room LL-22. It is open from 7:00am – 10:00pm from Monday – Thursday. You can also follow them on Instagram at @qc.animeclub.
