With the Black Student Union (BSU) completing their fourth year at IWU, active participants in the club know the impact BSU has on their life and the community.
BSU was first launched back in August of 2020 by the Intercultural and Global Office (IGO) to create a space for the black student population at IWU.
Junior Faith Crenshaw said she got involved in BSU her freshman year after being encouraged to join.
“I had a friend who worked with them, and she worked in the IGO office,” Crenshaw said. “From there they kind of pushed me towards BSU.”
She said that she feels like BSU has helped bring more diversity and cultures to IWU since the club started.
“I was told that in the beginning there were not a lot of colored students, and I’ve heard that there’s definitely been students who have been more willing to come because there is some diversity here,” Crenshaw said.
She said BSU opened her up to new experiences and opportunities to engage with other students from different cultural backgrounds.
“I’m of many cultures myself, so I love learning about different cultures, not just black students, but everybody,” Crenshaw said. “They also introduce us to new foods and because I’m a chef I love trying new foods from other cultures.”
Junior Denize Gatabazi said BSU has helped provide her a community since she learned about them her freshman year.
“I know definitely coming in as a freshman, it could be scary but meeting them first and foremost and just getting involved with them my freshman year kind of helped me throughout, even until now,” Gatabazi said.
She said that she has seen BSU make an impact on the IWU community for not only colored students, but for the entire student body.
Junior Tiana Keene said she started to attend BSU’s events her freshman year after her roommate, Gatabazi, got her involved.
“I’ve attended different things like the Sneaker Ball last year and have really just enjoyed their different events,” Keene said.
She said that as an active participant in BSU’s events, she would love to see more community engagement.
“I think it would be neat to see more of the community meshing and bringing more students onto campus, like collaborating with Taylor,” Keene said.
The Black Student Union has made a substantial impact on students of all cultures in the four years since its creation.
BSU continues to have events for all students and will host their Blackout Weekend this Friday and Saturday.
