The shortest month of the year commemorates Black History. UF’s Black student organizations are making sure it doesn’t go unnoticed.
Black History Month has been celebrated every February since 1976.
Americans are encouraged to reflect on the past work of Black leaders and court rulings, but many feel there is still work to do.
Tyrus Fleetwood, 25, is the founder and president of the Black Public Health Network (BPHN) at UF. He said he created the organization in May 2020 to heed the voices of Black public health figures and guide future leaders.
“I believe that there’s nothing new under the sun,” Fleetwood said. “So, there’s no point of sitting here and trying to recreate something when it’s already been laid down. We can just take from the people that worked very hard and diligent toward making change to get us to the point where we are today.”
BPHN will be hosting Zoom events every Monday at 6:30 p.m. throughout the month of February. The next event will be held Feb. 15.
The University of Florida has its own history in the struggle for equality. On April 15, 1971, members of the Black Student Union protested the scarcity of Black faculty and students through a sit-in in the office of President Stephen O’Connell. 66 students were arrested as a result, according to George A. Smathers Libraries. This day would come to be known as Black Thursday.
The Gator Chapter of NAACP (@naacpatuf) is perhaps UF’s most prominent Black student organization. Its affiliation with the NAACP allows students to consider national initiatives where they can best apply them: on campus.
The chapter’s virtual event “Redefining Black History” was held Feb. 1. The organization wrote on its Instagram, “Black history has always gone beyond the simplistic definition of celebrating and acknowledging those who have come before us. It’s the idea of rejoicing, reflecting and reminiscing on what makes us Black!”
The organization keeps the student body updated on significant events, including the presidential inauguration, school board meetings and Mayor Poe’s book club.
To get involved with the UF chapter of the NAACP, UF students are encouraged to visit ufnaacp.org and click “Membership”. Members are expected to make an annual contribution and attend monthly meetings.
After 45 years of memorializing Black History, the struggle for racial equality continues. Student involvement keeps this movement alive on campus. Fleetwood says that starts with leaving your mark in your college.
“Whatever you see best as far as making change within where you’re at, hold yourself accountable before you can hold the university accountable,” he said.
“Hold your college accountable. Those are the people you deal with, those are the people you see every day.”