The Black Student Union is a club that had a rocky start here at North Point, with its first meetings last year receiving opposition and protest from students and parents alike. However, BSU has overcome its initial troubles and has become a safe space for all students to learn and grow. The club is dedicated to educating people on the struggles that minorities face and fostering empathy among students.
The club meets in Docket’s room every 2nd and 4th Wednesday during the second half of win time, each meeting having a dedicated topic of discussion along with other unique activities.
“In the club you learn about a lot of things,” Ryann Niswonger (’24) said. “There’s a new lesson every meeting … some topics are heavier than others, but all are equally as important.”
While Niswonger knows that BSU welcomes her as a white person, many students don’t. Many believe the club is only for the black students at the school. However, the Founder of BSU, A’Nija Hughley (’24), encourages all students to come to and participate in the club.
“It is a very open and welcoming environment,” Hughley said.
Any students interested in going to the club should come.
“If you’re willing to listen and want to learn about black students’ experiences you should totally come,” Hughley said.
Unfortunately, not all of the white students who have gone to the club have been willing to listen and learn. Many showed up to the first meetings being disruptive and provocative, but that was quickly put to an end.
“People would give me weird looks when I told them I was in the club,” Niswonger said. “They don’t see a need for BSU or they think there should be a white student union. I get side-eyed because I’m white and in the BSU”.
Another student, Rachel Goldberg, encountered a lot of confusion about her being in BSU.
“People get really confused when i tell them I’m in BSU,” Goldberg said. “They ask me why there isn’t a white student union and why I’m not in that instead”.
She is not concerned about the students often confused by her being in BSU.
“They always just look at me funny and don’t believe me when I say I’m in BSU,” Goldberg said.
But for the people in BSU, there is no question of what the purpose of the club is, with the founder being most sure of all.
“I wanted to start it after i saw that Timberland had one,” Hughley said.
She continued to describe her vision for the club.
“A group of students… who could discuss issues in our school together and try to talk about possible solutions or steps we could take to address them is the vision,” Hughley said.
For the students attending BSU, this is not just a vision, but what the club does every meeting. Niswonger describes how grateful she was to learn about issues at the school.
“Things like microaggressions and misogynoir were things i didn’t know about, but after learning about them I noticed them a lot in our school,” Niswonger said. “It’s a club that can cover heavy and uncomfortable topics, but being educated on them is important.”
The BSU has overcome its initial challenges and has become an open and welcoming space for students to learn and grow. Focusing on educating and aiding students and helping foster a community. Do’nt be shy, visit BSU.