A new market to celebrate the experience of third cultures and heritage will come to Milwaukee’s Zillman Park on Saturday, Sept. 28.
Third Culture Market, a new venture from the recently formed Third Culture collective, will be the group’s first-ever market. Third Culture is a collective of people who grew up within the bounds of being a “third-culture kid.” The term comes from children who grew up in between cultures — their parents’ culture and the culture in which they were raised. Often, they grow up to mesh the two cultures together into a third, unique culture. The collective now wants to bring that experience to its market.
“Third Culture started as a love letter to our own heritage,” said Salam Satayer, a founder of Third Culture. “There’s a real pain of being a third-culture kid. We often have these conversations about growing up differently from our parents, and about that sense of not fully belonging anywhere.”
The group has members of multiple backgrounds from Palestinian, Iranian, Columbian and Black American. They would often speak about the music and foods they would listen to, but realized there was a lack of cultural representation that embodies their experiences. Rather than wait, Third Collective formed to bring the cultures they wanted to Milwaukee.
“We realized how much we craved that reintroduction here in Milwaukee, but we didn’t want to wait for it to happen, so we wanted to create it ourselves,” Satayer said. “Our goal is to create spaces where people from all corners of the community feel authentically represented, and that really starts with active listening, and then providing events where real community connection is connected.”
The market will feature 20 vendors who will share their respective cultures to create a cohesive experience. Vendors range from Middle Eastern-owned shops to Hispanic and Latino, Black, Native American and many other countries that will have jewelry, clothes, and food trucks.
An additional table will be set up by Third Culture to talk about their cultural heritages. The collective hopes to encourage conversation between attendees and vendors to explore various cultures represented.
Third Culture Market will be held on Sept. 28 from 3-9 p.m. at Zillman Park, 21685 S. Kinnickinnic Ave. in Milwaukee.
