Since Sage Okolo, a junior film production major at Chapman, took over as the public relations and social media chair of the Black Student Union (BSU) in January 2020, the club’s Instagram account has gained over 2,000 followers. The organization has slowly but surely fostered a strong base of engagement in recent months to increase awareness, advertise ways to get involved and empower Black students and faculty at Chapman through human connection and an underlying family dynamic among members.

That virtual community embodies this year's theme for Black History Month, “The Black Family: representation, identity and diversity,” derived from the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH). Jaelyn Fudge, a member of BSU, told The Pather that the Black family has continued to grow and strengthen despite the challenges this year has presented. Okolo echoed that sentiment.

“(Often) Black History Month provides a lot of focus on the negatives, the hardships and the trauma that comes with being a Black person in this country or a Black person globally,” Okolo said. “We really wanted to center on Black joy (this month).” 

Quaylan Allen, professor at the Attallah College of Educational Studies, shared that the Black experience represented in the United States is “rooted in trauma.” However, he said that is all the more reason to celebrate representation, identity and diversity.

“That trauma is intergenerational; it gets passed on,” Allen said. “There's a need to counter trauma with joy. That includes celebrating success, celebrating resilience, celebrating happiness (and) celebrating who you are.”

This year’s theme intends to accomplish just that. But this year in particular, the executive board struggled to maintain the organization’s bond because of the sheer exhaustion expressed by BSU members and other Black students on campus in carrying the burden of being both activists and educators. 

“A lot of Black students are burnt out from teaching their white and non-Black peers about racism (or) about their lived experiences,” Okolo said. “They’re burnt out from having to stand up and defend each other and their own identities in class.”

Okolo said it can sometimes be difficult to encourage BSU members to attend their Monday night meetings and discuss racism. Nevertheless, she acknowledged that although it may be difficult to continue the conversation during meetings, it’s crucial to have these discussions to keep the community together and to remind members that they are not alone.

This sentiment from the BSU executive board trickles down to the exact people they serve and strive to empower. Fudge, a sophomore communication studies major, joined BSU her freshman year and told The Panther that the members quickly became her family. With the combination of the rise in Black Lives Matter awareness and the COVID-19 pandemic, Fudge found herself seeking support from her peers in BSU.

“The fact that we still found ways to stay connected during those times was really crucial,” Fudge said. “We have, in a sense, gotten stronger because of that.”