Feb. has been dedicated to celebrating the history and culture of African Americans since a 1986 decision by Congress. Black History Month has been seen as a representation of educating those about the black leaders of the past and how we can improve for the future.
This month on campus the Colorado Mesa University (CMU) Black Student Alliance (BSA) comes together to celebrate with over 11 events ranging from guest speakers to a Valentine’s Day dance.
“History is very important because we take the time to actually sit down and look at it from a different perspective, other than the primary perspective of somebody who is a cis. a white and most likely male who needs to be educated on black history and culture. There are great things that come out through music and through the arts like poetry. [From authors such as] Maya Angelou, Sojourner Truth [from] the women’s suffrage movement or Malcolm X with the Nation of Islam. [This month is dedicated to] sitting and talking about these people and how their impact is important,” BSA Coordinator Sanaa Nugent said.
Nugent emphasized the importance of acknowledging Black History Month, as it’s a way to have a dedicated month of educating anyone about Black culture. She stated that she found a place on campus with BSA and her CMU family, and what a great resource the Cultural Inclusion Council (CIC) is for students of different ethnicities and races to find other people to relate to.
“I was in a really tough position mentally, feeling very homesick and very isolated. I felt like nobody would get what I’m going through. [After taking the BSA coordinator] position, I wanted to create a welcoming environment and be that person to be like, ‘hey, you are not alone.’ If I hadn’t taken the CIC job, I wouldn’t have met these people, great colleagues, and friends,” Nugent said.
BSA has many events planned for the month, some that have already passed were a talk from Dr. Frederick Gooding on the topic of “Hip Hop gets a bad Rap” and the faculty Jazz Brunch.
Some upcoming events to look forward to are our group talks on the subject of Black Hair and Black Culture and its impact. There will also be some prize-winning events such as Black History Month Jeopardy and Beat Shazam. On Valentine’s Day, there will be a free screening of “Love and Basketball” for all to enjoy.
“[The] biggest event is the winter formal, dubbed ‘The Winter Formal Black Elevation Celebration,’ to celebrate Blackness and the achievements that we did, how far we came, how we could do better as a whole. Whether you’re Black, white, Asian or Latino, [this is for] anybody and everybody just to have a nice time to dress up and boogie on the dance floor,” Nugent said.
BSA has a lot planned for this month and you can keep up with all the events, times, and dates by following the BSA Instagram account @cmubsa.
