Black History Month at CCHS

February has been established as Black History Month in the United States, and on Culver City High School’s campus it is well known and well celebrated. At the head of event planning, the Black Student Union creates a month’s worth of activities to promote Black History, and involve students in the cultural celebrations.

This includes having “Melanin Mondays,” where students and staff who purchased the Black Student Union hoodies are encouraged to wear them and show unity. There will also be movie showings during Centaur Plus (study hall), to expose people to HBCU-(Historically Black Colleges and University) themed films.

Additionally, there will be a panel put on by the Black Parent Affinity group where Black professionals can share their experiences as a person of color in their field. All of this and many more events are an effort “to be giving and bring a safe space for other Black students at school to feel comfortable daily,” says BSU President Taniah Orr.

BSU is a well-known entity on campus, and along with their activities, help to promote important topics like Black History month. This is in tandem with CCUSD’s efforts to diversify education by integrating Advanced Placement (AP) World History into the curriculum, Ethnic Studies as a requirement, and future African American History. A prominent figure for this diversification, Ethnic Studies teacher Kim Young says, “I think that it’s always really important for students to see themselves represented in the curriculum that they’re learning,” which is why she and many other teachers are active in the process.

By incorporating more courses that shift the lens towards marginalized communities, students will be able to learn more about their identities and cultural histories as well. In this way, the Black Student Union and CCHS are adjoined in the idea of increasing representation and a sense of community on campus.