The month of February is Black History Month and our writers wasted no time writing articles and producing content that would highlight Black history and the Black community. To honor their hard work, this Editors’ Blog will highlight our favorite articles from this month that only continued to prove that Black History Month is truly every month.
- Katherine Saavedra
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One of my favorite articles from our Black History Month content was Katherine Saavedra’s “The Women Behind the Black Lives Matter Movement.”
Saavedra emphasizes the importance of the Black Lives Matter movement and its massive reach, naming it the largest movement in American history. Although, as Saavedra points out, you may not know the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter was created by Alicia Garza, Patrisse Cullors, and Opal Tometi in 2013.
Saavedra goes on to describe each of these women, their background with the BLM movement as well as their role in the current fight for justice. Saavedra ends her article with a powerful punch, stating that “It is important for people to understand that racism is not just limited to police brutality, but also everyday microaggressions. We need to learn about those microaggressions and not ignore them because it all begins with educating ourselves.”
I found Saavedra’s article to be captivating and extremely informative–– an important addition to our platform. This article exemplifies women’s power within such a large movement, incredible work Katherine! –-Hannah Andress
- Isa Iiams
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One of my favorite articles to come out of HCAU’s Black History Month content was Isa Iiams’ “4 Fashion Styles Popularized by Black Culture” article.
Iiams points out that the fashion industry often refuses to acknowledge and frequently overlooks the influence Black culture has over what is new and trendy in society.
The article gives a few great examples of fashion trends that were first created and brought up in Black culture. I thought the examples Iiams gave were fascinating because these are everyday fashion accessories that have become so mainstream and normalized, but are seldom attributed to the Black creators that started them.
When Iiams says, “This won’t be a piece about cultural appropriation, because that is an entirely different story that I as a non-BIPOC writer have less authority on, but it is important to recognize that many “aesthetic” and “Pinterest” styles we see today were once labeled as “ghetto,” “unprofessional” or “tacky” when introduced and first worn by Black and Brown people,” I thought that was such an important aspect to bring attention to.
Unfortunately, Black creatives, and BIPOC people in general, are sworn off as not being “white enough” to fit into the fashion industry, but then their creative styles are stolen and labelled as trendy by the same white people that labelled them as “other.” This article just goes to show how important BIPOC creativity and artistry is in our society. Great work, Isa! –Christina McAlister
- Gabrielle Levy
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Gabrielle Levy’s “History Class Was Wrong: The Montgomery Bus Boycott” provides important and little-known insight into one of the most impactful demonstrations of civil disobedience in United States history.
A long-time activist and member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), Rosa Parks’ refusal to give up her seat on a bus for a white man played a pivotal role in the Civil Rights Movement. Garbielle’s article also highlights the lesser known story of Claudette Colvin, a fifteen-year-old activist who also refused to give up her bus seat nine months prior to Rosa Parks.
A young Black teenager, Claudette Colvin’s story fell to the wayside as the NAACP decided she was not the right person to be the face of the Civil Rights Movement compared to Rosa Parks, a middle class woman. Her story, and the stories of many other Black civil rights activists, are not often taught in history classes.
Gabrielle does a wonderful job at highlighting the importance of recognizing prominent Black activists while also remaining inquisitive about the history we learn in school in order to understand the truth to the fullest. –Nicole Scallan
- Maya Kohrman
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Yet another white-washed award show was called out by writer Maya Kohrman with her article “Golden Globes: Black Creators Who Were Snubbed” which highlighted, not only the current nominees (or lack thereof) for this year’s Golden Globes, but the discriminatory history of other award shows.
Kohrman links plenty of helpful links throughout her article including fellow news organizations which noticed the same white-trend in the Golden Globes nominees as herself and the official list of nominees for readers to examine themselves.
Some of the snubbed nominees Kohrman draws much needed attention to Michaela Coel’s HBO drama I May Destroy You, Spike Lee’s Da 5 Bloods and cast members of both Lovecraft Country and Bridgerton.
Kohrman acknowledges the importance of Coel’s HBO drama and how it being overshadowed by Emily in Paris is simply unfair. While Lovecraft Country was nominated for Best Television Series (Drama), the Golden Globes still glosses over the incredible Black actors that contributed so much to the show. In addition to this, Spike Lee has been overlooked multiple times by the Golden Globes for no clear reason.
Kohrman’s article this February for Black History Month was one that was well-researched, well-organized and overall an eye-opening read. Her Campus American looks forward to many more articles from her–– Congratulations Maya! –Peyton Bigora
We are so proud of Maya, Gabrielle, Isa, Katherine and all of the HCAU writers who took the time to highlight Black trailblazers for Black History Month. Every article paid such an incredible tribute to this month and we are so excited to see more content from you all!
