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The Black Student Movement (BSM) student organization at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill will honor its leaders through 40 years of existence with two events Saturday (Feb. 23). Both are open to the public.

A Presidents Forum and Lunch from noon to 2 p.m. will feature past and current leaders discussing experiences that have shaped the group, and how those experiences impact the future and carry forward original intentions of the organization’s founders. The forum and lunch will be in the Upendo Lounge of the Student Academic Services Building North on Manning Drive. The cost is $5 per person. 

A Past Presidents’ Tribute Banquet, honoring accomplishments of former BSM presidents and leaders, will begin at 6 p.m. in the William and Ida Friday Continuing Education Center. Registration is $30, and attire is business dress. 

To register for either event, contact Courtney Knowling at caknowli@email.unc.edu by 5 p.m. Friday (Feb. 22). The events are sponsored by the BSM and supported by the UNC Office of Diversity and Multicultural Affairs and the General Alumni Association.

Preston Dobbins, who graduated from Carolina in 1969, was among the students who envisioned a Carolina campus that didn’t just accept the African-American community but actively sought its inclusion. The students brainstormed about a new campus entity dedicated to the ongoing presence of black culture and ideals, and on Nov. 7, 1967, the Black Student Movement was born. A week of activities last November marked the anniversary. Today, the group has approximately 400 members.

Accomplishments and changes resulting from or influenced by the movement include increased black student enrollment, establishment of the Upendo Lounge as a gathering place for black students, creation of African and Afro-American studies department and establishment of a freestanding building for the Sonja Haynes Stone Center for Black Culture and History.

“Carolina has a long tradition of activism, and the Black Student Movement has always been a part of that,” said Chancellor James Moeser. “Over the years, BSM members have made important contributions to making Carolina more open and diverse. The University is a better place today because of their efforts.”

In 1968, the BSM sided with striking cafeteria workers who cited low pay and poor treatment by white supervisors, the News & Observer of Raleigh reported in November: “For months, BSM leaders worked with cafeteria workers, joined in protests and even got arrested. The issue grew turbulent enough that Gov. Robert W. Scott became involved, and the National Guard was mobilized. Eventually, worker raises were approved, though dissatisfaction with job conditions led to another walkout.”

“While legal segregation had officially been abolished by the time the BSM was founded, social isolation and segregation were still a reality,” said Archie Ervin, Ph.D., associate provost for diversity and multicultural affairs and faculty adviser to the group. “The BSM paved the way for other racial and ethnic groups on the UNC campus, because the BSM originally broke the color barrier and other groups did not have to wage the same battles. As a result of the BSM’s early leadership, today, we can celebrate a campus that is a leader in racial diversity.”

BSM interest in outlets for black talent on campus led to formation of the Gospel Choir, the Opeyo! Dancers, the Ebony Readers/Onyx Theatre, the Black Ink student newspaper and the Harmonyx a cappella group.

For more information, contact Courtney Knowling by email: caknowli@email.unc.edu
or call Diversity and Multicultural Affairs at (919) 962-6962.

Diversity and Multicultural Affairs contact: Sherry Kappel, (919) 843-6085
News Services contact: L.J. Toler, (919) 962-2091

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