BSU Honors Black Culture Through Campus Activities

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Sebastian Whitfield

A hall posters celebrating Black History Month

The Black Student Union (BSU) held new activities during February or Black History Month as a way to promote a positive outlook on Black culture and improve campus environment. The club has meetings every other week throughout the year, but there is slightly more emphasis on it from leadership and student involvement in February.

Activities including musical chairs, film watching, dances, Kahoot! Parties, and Black artist highlights have taken place over the course of February throughout the community. These activities are open to all students and help promote a healthier and more inclusive school environment. For example, BSU and leadership collaborated in putting together the “Quad City” dance at Acalanes. The chosen theme for the night was “A Night in New Orleans” and was centered around Mardi Gras.

Senior Megan Stephens said “it was really well run and cool to see people from all four schools… I thought [the activities] were fun, and I liked the mask making they had for Mardi Gras.”

BSU activities are advantageous to Campolindo and the club itself for numerous reasons. BSU President senior Sydney Wood said that when they hold meetings with “candy or pizza and…music by black artists or…a short film by Black filmmakers,” more people are likely to engage.

These easy and fun activities aim to increase student interest in the club and membership. When more people join in the activities, it opens “up the door to discussions” which helps non-Black students better understand the situation of Black students on campus, said Wood. The activities allow BSU to maintain a balance between being fun and informational, which in turn makes more students engaged. “When the informational academies are hosted by the educational board of leadership…some of the students don’t respond well to it and they’re not listening or paying attention,” said Wood.

The impact these activities have on the campus atmosphere is immensely positive. BSU Treasurer senior Kemora Golstein said that the beautiful thing about the club is that it shows “people of color that there is a community [they] can join” and creates “an inviting environment.” BSU events also help diversify Campo’s focus and cultivate more well-rounded students. The year round activities show that the school’s community does not just revolve around sports or academics, but is also “involved in equity [on] campus.”

The club is actively trying to hold “activities that students are excited to participate in”, said BSU vice president senior Hunter Adams. The fun nature of these activities makes more students want to participate, which is reflected in the increased engagement from students in the club recently.

The Black Student Union hosts engaging activities as a way to make Campo more informed and inclusive. These events help “increase campus interactivity” with “Black history and culture”, which in turn helps “educate students”, said Adams.