{"id":1153,"date":"2016-02-19T17:59:10","date_gmt":"2016-02-19T23:59:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/com.bradley.edu\/newslab\/?p=1153"},"modified":"2016-02-19T18:03:21","modified_gmt":"2016-02-20T00:03:21","slug":"bradley-students-celebrate-black-history-month","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/com.bradley.edu\/newslab\/2016\/02\/19\/bradley-students-celebrate-black-history-month\/","title":{"rendered":"Bradley students celebrate Black History Month"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>BLACK HISTORY MONTH CONVERSATION<\/p>\n<p><\/strong>February is Black History Month, and to commemorate, members of the Office of Diversity and Inclusion at Bradley University had this conversation!<\/p>\n<p>In this video, four Bradley students discuss a range of topics including the meaning of Black History Month, their experiences at Bradley, and funny moments of their times here at Bradley.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Black History Month Conversation - 2016\" width=\"352\" height=\"198\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/HoB_2WY3hhI\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><br \/>\nBY HOPE WEBB<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>February is Black History Month, and Bradley\u2019s student organizations are gearing up to help educate the campus during this month of celebration and teaching.<\/p>\n<p>However, to many the month is about more than just black history.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI see Black History Month as a celebration of all the different things we should be and are already celebrating,\u201d said Norris Chase, executive director of the Office of Diversity and Inclusion.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis month is perfectly reminiscent of the past, appreciative of the present and inspiring for the future. The individuals that are highlighted during this month are so intelligent, yet they\u2019re fundamentally human. Throughout it all, we as people are all a part of Black History Month,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>In his Black History Month proclamation this year, President Obama alluded to progress as well as challenges we still need to address as a nation.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cChallenges persist and obstacles still stand in the way of becoming the country envisioned at our founding, and we would do a disservice to all who came before us if we remained blind to the way past injustices shape the present,\u201d Obama said in his proclamation.<\/p>\n<p>Chase had similar thoughts. \u201cThere are people who deal with discriminations in today\u2019s world. We\u2019re still having a conversation about women and equal pay. We\u2019re still having a conversation about how to provide quality services to people who identify as LGBT,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>Since 1976, every American president has designated February as Black History Month, according to History.com. This year\u2019s theme is \u201cHallowed Grounds: Sites of African American Memories.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBlack history is simply American history. The values that are highlighted in Black History Month are those that we should and do support as a nation: justice, family, equality, scholarship, ingenuity, the list goes on and on,\u201d said Chase.<\/p>\n<p>To commemorate the month, Bradley student organizations and the Black History Month Planning Committee are putting on no fewer than 21 events during the month of February. These events range from guest speakers to a speech team showcase to a Mardi Gras celebration.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBradley is an institution that has a very direct focus on educating people for the future. At the core of it, that is the purpose of celebrating our history\u2019s leaders,\u201d said Chase.<\/p>\n<p>Bradley student Deanna Wellere spoke of her past experiences with Black History Month, and her appreciation of Bradley supporting minority students\u2019 voices.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe administration advocates so much for us being able to speak out,\u201d she said. \u201cWhere you would think \u2018Oh, they don\u2019t understand what it\u2019s like to be a black person,\u2019 you have those individuals who are willing to learn. That\u2019s what I love about Black History Month.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>To Sojourner White, Bradley student and resident advisor, Black History Month is a teaching opportunity.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere are some non-minority students who are genuinely curious about African American culture, and instead of getting offended about their questions, we should listen,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<p>Chase believes Black History Month adds to the bigger picture of the so-called \u201cBradley experience\u201d that students are encouraged to pursue during their years on the hilltop.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAt the core of it, I hope these events as well as the entire Bradley experience help students gain the ability and the comfort level to interact with people who are different than them,\u201d said Chase.<\/p>\n<p>Anyone interested in learning more about Black History Month and the calendar of events for the month can visit Bradley.edu\/diversity.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s not about blacks, it\u2019s not even about race. It\u2019s about progression, growth, equality for all, and essentially, humanity,\u201d said Chase.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>BLACK HISTORY MONTH CONVERSATION February is Black History Month, and to commemorate, members of the Office of Diversity and Inclusion at Bradley University had this conversation! In this video, four Bradley students discuss a range of topics including the meaning of Black History Month, their experiences at Bradley, and funny moments of their times here at Bradley. &nbsp; BY HOPE WEBB &nbsp; February is Black History Month, and Bradley\u2019s student organizations are gearing up to help educate the campus during this month of celebration and teaching. However, to many the month is about more than just black history. \u201cI see Black History Month as a celebration of all the different things we should be and are already celebrating,\u201d said Norris Chase, executive director of the Office of Diversity and Inclusion. \u201cThis month is perfectly reminiscent of the past, appreciative of the present and inspiring for the future. The individuals that are highlighted during this month are so intelligent, yet they\u2019re fundamentally human. Throughout it all, we as people are all a part of Black History Month,\u201d he said. In his Black History Month proclamation this year, President Obama alluded to progress as well as challenges we still need to address [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":97,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12,8],"tags":[207,34,208],"class_list":["post-1153","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-campus","category-talk","tag-black-history-month","tag-com425","tag-hope-webb"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/com.bradley.edu\/newslab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1153","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/com.bradley.edu\/newslab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/com.bradley.edu\/newslab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/com.bradley.edu\/newslab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/97"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/com.bradley.edu\/newslab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1153"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/com.bradley.edu\/newslab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1153\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1155,"href":"https:\/\/com.bradley.edu\/newslab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1153\/revisions\/1155"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/com.bradley.edu\/newslab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1153"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/com.bradley.edu\/newslab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1153"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/com.bradley.edu\/newslab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1153"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}