The Quad: Galentine’s over Valentine’s

With Valentine’s Day around the corner, people are scrambling to make plans with their significant others to celebrate the day of romance. However, another popular celebration is Galentine’s Day, a day devoted to celebrating female friendships. It falls on Feb. 13, the day before Valentine’s Day.

The concept of Galentine’s Day was first introduced in the comedy sitcom “Parks and Recreation” in 2010. In season two, episode 16, Leslie Knope, (Amy Poehler) throws her annual Galentine’s Day brunch get-together for her female friends.

While Galentine’s Day finds its origins in fiction, girls and their female friends still celebrate the meaning behind Galentine’s Day in real life.

UCLA students participate in Galentine’s Day as well, although some may not know it.

“I have (celebrated Galentine’s before), but we didn’t call it Galentine’s because we didn’t know it was a thing,” said Negin Rahimzadeh, a third-year molecular, cell and developmental biology student. “We would get together, watch a movie, have yummy snacks and have a chill night.”

Although Galentine’s Day isn’t that well established in popular culture, the internet is rife with articles detailing how one should celebrate Galentine’s Day and BuzzFeed published an article about the reasons one should celebrate Galentine’s.

Those who have watched “Parks and Recreation” are more familiar with the term Galentine’s Day. Anne Wasserman, a second-year sociology student who used to watch the show said that Leslie Knope and her friends from “Parks and Recreation” had inspired her to celebrate the holiday.

For those of us who are currently single, Galentine’s Day is a good way for us to celebrate the love that we have for our friends. However, one does not have to be single to celebrate Galentine’s Day.

“We don’t really have to be single to celebrate it, some of my friends were in a relationship and we would still celebrate it,” said Rahimzadeh. “If we were single, we would cry about not having a boyfriend and if someone has a boyfriend they would cry about their relationship.”

In my opinion, Galentine’s Day is superior to Valentine’s Day because it is a day to celebrate one of the most important things in a woman’s life – her friends.

Rachel Russell, a second-year biology and gender studies student, thinks that Galentine’s Day is definitely better than Valentine’s Day because on Valentine’s Day people are pressured to be with somebody or have a date.

“It is a great way to destroy the patriarchy and have a wonderful time,” said Russell.

Female friendships are as important as romantic relationships because one’s closest friends will always be there to provide emotional support when needed. Galentine’s Day is the day to celebrate and appreciate these precious friendships.

“At this age, friends are really important and when we’re young like this we are probably going to have our friends longer than a person we’re dating,” said Wasserman. “And so it’s really important to celebrate the love of your friends, as that is just as important as love of a significant other.”

The Quad asked several students about their plans for Galentine’s. Many people did not know what Galentine’s Day was. However, there are a few students who have made exciting plans with their female friends.

“I’m actually planning to meet up with my old roommates and my friends. We’re just going to hang out and maybe make cupcakes, watch movies and drink wine.” – Rachel Russell, second-year biology and gender studies student

“On Galentine’s Day, I might go with one of my friends to an Angel Olsen concert.” – Anne Wasserman, second-year sociology student

“I’m spending Galentine’s Day with my Three North mates watching movies and stuffing our faces with food but we’re not going to watch any movies about love because we are independent women who do not need a man, we just need each other for good laughs.” Carolina Armenta, second-year political science student