After the passing of Utah HB 261 in January of 2024, many diversity-based clubs on campus felt the weight of anti-DEI practices as well as issues involving events, representation and community, including the Black Student Union.
BSU is a cultural club on campus that aims to cultivate and promote inclusion and cultural awareness pertaining to all factors of Black diasporas. Students of BSU do this via events, fundraisers, collaborations and many on-campus initiatives such as the Hear Me Out/Conspiracy Night and the No Place Like Family Cookout.
In the past, BSU was among the diverse organizations associated with the now-dissolved Center of Inclusion and Belonging and the Multicultural Inclusion Student Association. For BSU, this included support from faculty who were dedicated to inclusion and belonging, scholarships for students who took up leadership roles, and a community where students from underrepresented populations could support each other’s projects.
However, students from BSU have reported difficulties in carrying out such events; many of these difficulties can be attributed to HB 261, more commonly known as the anti-DEI bill, which is the sole reason for the dissolution of CIB and MISA. As a result, BSU and other organizations were reduced to clubs, which had implications regarding funding and visibility.
Nevaéh Anderson, a junior criminal justice major from Atlanta and president of BSU, said advertisements for the annual Black Excellence Gala were restricted and halted. When it came time to advertise for the event via the campus-wide faculty/ staff email newsletter, Anderson said her verbiage and wording in the advertisement were unapproved for “unspecified reasons.” Anderson declined to specify who was in charge of the disapproval.
This left Anderson to contact faculty on her own accord and attempt to increase faculty involvement for the gala.
Therefore, news about the gala could not reach the appropriate number of faculty members on campus, which led to a lack of nominations for awards, ultimately causing the event’s cancellation, Anderson said.
Anderson said when the CIB was still in operation, the organization represented all diversity organizations, which led to increased marketing and attendance when it came to events.
“Marketing was on both ends, both the organization itself as well as CIB and MISA that kept spreading largely across campus,” Anderson said.
Talara Pelt, a senior English major from Las Vegas and secretary of BSU, said the ways in which BSU events have been advertised have been limited since the dissolution of the CIB and MISA.
Pelt said communications that BSU has access to, without the help of MISA, are not effective in reaching students and driving engagement, despite their ongoing efforts with flyers, posters and emails.
Pelt said, “It’s always going to be important to let people know that you definitely have a community even within a predominantly white university such as Utah Tech.”
Anderson said: “In the past, we had spaces where we could freely discuss our experiences, find mentors and get support. Now, students are more cautious, and those safe spaces feel increasingly fragile.”
Despite the stressors that stem from a lack of visibility and funding, BSU continues to be a group of students who strive to advocate and represent Black voices and experiences. Notably, BSU honors the annual Black History Month with a list of events that emphasize and celebrate the importance of Black culture, such as the Disco Night, Poetry Slam and the upcoming Karaoke Me.
Regardless of the lack of visibility, BSU is constantly accepting students to help with their initiatives. Sharniece Pinex, a freshman psychology major from Las Vegas and BSU vice president, joined BSU as a freshman.
Pinex said, “I saw that there was a Black Student Union; it was kind of surprising because, you know, it’s Utah.”
She said through the motivation from Anderson, she was encouraged to join BSU in her very first semester.
Anderson said, “Despite not having the momentum and support behind us, we are still trying to make an effort.”
