Every February, we honor the sacrifices and contributions of the Black Community. To help students and staff better understand how they can help, officers of Tualatin High School’s Black Student Union (BSU) agreed to discuss the importance of what we can do to better honor Black history and people of color (POC).

Why should Black history be honored outside of February?

Junior Jada Belisle, vice president of BSU: “It’s important to learn about different cultures to get educated on them … Black history has influenced a lot of how the world is today, so it’s important to know what the roots of [that influence] are.” 

Sophomore Ngozi Unghambi, BSU marketing manager: “It feels nice to share our culture and get acknowledged and recognized for things we’ve accomplished and started.” 

How can we increase awareness of Black history?

Senior Jayanna Roberstson, BSU president: “The teaching needs to be done differently … They just talk about the same typical Black history. They don’t really get deeper into how they became what they were.”

Belisle: “Teaching about the ‘during’ process … what people went throught during it (slavery, civil rights movements, etc.). It’s a big part of history that needs to be taught to students.”

What should the school community do to increase awareness of the Black Community?

Robertson: “Engage with more Black students. A lot of Black students who live in suburban areas feel isolated … We put ourselves in a bubble to re-adjust to the different environment to be accepted … For those who haven’t been around Black people … engage with them and understand that we’re different than the stereotypes put on us.” Robertson emphasized.

Belisle: “In this predominantly white school, cultural groups that aren’t white often just stick to their own people – we should be more conversational and interactive with each other to help each other fit in.”

How can students better support the Black community?

Robertson: “Reposting Black history on your story… social media can help people be more aware and learn more information that the schools don’t teach.”

Without Black history, we would not be living in the same world we do today. There are plenty of online Black-owned businesses, from clothes to food to hair products, where you can shop to help out. They have influenced the world in more ways than most people can comprehend. Our student body’s support for BSU is a good place to start honoring the contributions of the Black community. Feel free to follow their instagram, @tualatin.bsu, to keep in touch with them.