There is a need for the BSU
Fall is upon us, and the recent rains ushered in another season of long sleeves and fall boots. Most parents and students now have a routine of leaving the house on time. Next is the challenge of remembering all the school breaks and finding constructive activities for the children to do during their breaks. Perhaps during the next school break, we should encourage our children to be involved in empowering initiatives that will give them the actual break they need. An empowering group such as the Black Student Union (BSU) could be one of those initiatives. Black Student Unions, foundationally, promote advocating, empowering, education, and exploring the Black experience. (Black Student Union, n.d.) The Black population in New Mexico is less than 5%, and in those numbers, 22.4% areunder the age of 18. (U.S. Census Bureau, ASD, WSCS, n.d.) Child today need our support and guidance, especially during their educational experiences. Our children are not only dealing with the changes that accompany being a preteen or adolescent, but they are also dealing with racial stressors.
In 1966, San Francisco State University established the first BSU. (Writers, 2022) The first BSU was initially formed to address politics and civil rights issues. It was during this advocacy that the Black Student Union (BSU) gained its voice. Although this advocacy was at a college collegiate level, our youth of today want to address similar issues. More news articles across our nation, including social media, continue to highlight the racial disparities affecting our youth across multiple categories. Our children’s primary and secondary education is no different. A BSU could provide a safe refuge and cultural affirmation to our young youth. It could also positively impact the student’s identity development and academic success. (Writers, 2022)
Breast Cancer Awareness month began in 1985 as a partnership between the American Cancer Society and the Pharmaceutical Division of Imperial Chemical Industries. The first national broad campaign was the Pink Ribbon Bag in 1992, established by Adara cosmetics. Unfortunately, the campaigns didn’t decrease how many Black women were dying from breast cancer.
Black women are diagnosed with breast cancer at the same rate as white women. However, according to the American Cancer Society, Black women are 40% more likely to die from the disease and twice as likely to die if they are older than 50. There isn’t adequate data, but there have been studies that suggest systemic racism has impacted the death rates of breast cancer for Black women. “Research has shown that Black women are more likely to suffer from chronic, lifetime stress that can negatively influence how they respond to breast cancer and how well they fare in the long run.” (Adana Llanos, Ph.D., 2022
The journey of treating breast cancer is not a process that one should deal with alone. Patient navigation or peer navigation can lower costs, reduce hospital re-admissions and emergency room visits, and improve quality of life of women with breast cancer. (Peer Navigators Aim to Help Black Women with Breast Cancer | Stanford Medicine, 2022) The concept of peer-navigated programs came from the need to provide more information and resources for Black women. In 1990, patient navigation programs were introduced to a Harlem Hospital to assist Black women with late-stage breast cancer.
In 1966, San Francisco State University established the first BSU. (Writers, 2022) The first BSU was initially formed to address politics and civil rights issues. It was during this advocacy that the Black Student Union (BSU) gained its voice. Although this advocacy was at a college collegiate level, our youth of today want to address similar issues. More news articles across our nation, including social media, continue to highlight the racial disparities affecting our youth across multiple categories. Our children’s primary and secondary education is no different. A BSU could provide a safe refuge and cultural affirmation to our young youth. It could also positively impact the student’s identity development and academic success. (Writers, 2022)
In June 2022, The Office of African American Affairs (OAAA) conducted a virtual panel about the importance of BSUs, addressing how our students feel in school. It was an informative discussion with frontline insight into what our children are facing during their educational experiences. The first step, and the first to address Black public education in New Mexico was passage of HB43, or the Black Education Act (BEA) in 2021. The HB43 Black Education Act (BEA). BEA provides student resources for BSU setup, petition forms, sponsor letters, and request forms. New Mexico is beginning to address Black education concerns. Currently, in New Mexico, there are Black Student Unions at the primary and secondary education levels. Some are located at the University of New Mexico, New Mexico State University, and Albuquerque Public Schools. However, as always, continued collaboration and progress monitoring and system evaluation of systems will be a necessary component if we hope to increase the number of Black Student Unions in the public education sectors.