By Veronica Aponte
As the Training Lead for this year’s BLinc. board, I wanted to prioritize the student voice alongside bringing to light some of the most important organizations and centers across campus. Allyship is an aspect that has been heavily circulating across all media platforms. As a community, we need to prioritize being better allies and understand that uncovering biases and educating ourselves is an ongoing process.
This training was centered around education and advocacy as ways to be an ally for the Black community. However, an important aspect I wanted to mention is the student voice from the Black Student Union and others who shared their experiences during the training. Having these conversations can be difficult, but it is necessary to ensure growth and progress as a society. It is a fundamental part of becoming a better ally to those around us.
This training was divided into three segments. The first part of the training focused on defining important terms like ‘allyship,’ and why it is important. Next, we discussed the difference between the terms ‘ethnicity,’ ‘race,’ and ‘nationality.’ These terms are commonly misused and can be a source of microaggression against minorities. As a member of the Latinx community, I have experienced this misuse firsthand with the recent conversation around the term “Afro-Latinidad.” Specifically, there was a post circulating which read “Latinos or Latinx for Black Lives.” While this campaign has good intent, there is a general failure to recognize those who are Black and identify as Latino. This is just one example of how incorrect language can divide us rather than unite us.
The last part of the training outlined six core objectives:
- Self and social awareness,
- Checking in on your Black friends and community,
- Respecting Black and brown spaces,
- Acknowledgment and action,
- White Privilege
- The importance of diversifying your personal media
Each of these objectives contained actionable steps students can take to implement allyship strategies into their daily lives. Throughout the training, we gained valuable insights and heard from students about their own personal experiences.
This training gave so many individuals a platform to speak about their experiences and the opportunity for others to learn through listening. We are grateful for the positive feedback we received from this training and look forward to offering more events to give students a platform to be heard. As a collective, we are striving to ensure that we are advocating and creating a space in which global citizenship may continue to flourish.
