Ithaca College is (in)famously a PWI (predominantly white institution). Many students of color spend their time at IC advocating for better treatment and diversity measures. The school has a long, long history of racial justice issues, dating all the way back to 1970 when ALS (Afro-Latin Society) protested against budget cuts that were largely helping Black and Latino students up until most recently during the Spring 2023 semester when IC Rise Up formed and gathered testimonials from students of color all across campus. Between then, IC has also had multiple faculty members – including interim lecturer Anne Hamilton in the theater department and former IC president Tom Rochon – depart from the college because of their racist acts, and there have been protests against the amount of sexual violence against women of color.*
Now, Ithaca College’s Black Student Union (BSU) is regrouping once again to be a part of advocacy and support for Black students on campus. According to Zoe Gainer, a junior at IC and the current president of BSU, the club dissolved for a number of different reasons, but an interested group formed last fall to try and bring the club back. “Things last year just weren’t happening to the extent that they needed to and we had low attendance. But now there’s an entirely new e-board and we’re hoping to start really organizing for spring semester,” Zoe said.
Along with a new e-board, BSU has some new plans for their organization as well. Zoe told Buzzsaw: “Last year, we had a lot of focus on community-building events, like movie nights or paint-and-sips. But this year, we want to be a lot more focused on advocacy and sort of getting into the political atmosphere of things.”
One of the ideas floating around BSU’s radar is promoting voter registration. They also want to expand their reach to the Black community outside of the Ithaca College campus through volunteering and involvement with organizations downtown like the Southside Community Center and GIAC (Greater Ithaca Activities Center).
Overall, they intend to be a space for Black students from all backgrounds and ethnicities to be able to come together and feel uplifted. When asked about the history of IC BSU, Zoe referenced ALS (Afro-Latin Society) and the 1970 protests. “Though that organization no longer exists, we’re sort of the children of that one organization, as well as all the other identity-based, race-based orgs on campus, like Poder or SOCA, or ASA – we are all sort of descended from that one group. And there’s a lot we can learn from that history.”
Zoe said: “We’ve seen how students on campus have felt motivated to protest and to advocate for themselves and people around them, and BSU fully intends to participate in that and be a part of that advocacy.”
What BSU needs now from the rest of the Ithaca College campus is for us to show up. “This really is an org that is being built from the ground up. Come to events when we have them, come to meetings.”
“What we really ask for from the students is support and willingness to listen and to have us be heard and uplifted.”
*More information about all these incidents referenced can be found in archival issues of The Ithacan.
Now, Ithaca College’s Black Student Union (BSU) is regrouping once again to be a part of advocacy and support for Black students on campus. According to Zoe Gainer, a junior at IC and the current president of BSU, the club dissolved for a number of different reasons, but an interested group formed last fall to try and bring the club back. “Things last year just weren’t happening to the extent that they needed to and we had low attendance. But now there’s an entirely new e-board and we’re hoping to start really organizing for spring semester,” Zoe said.
Along with a new e-board, BSU has some new plans for their organization as well. Zoe told Buzzsaw: “Last year, we had a lot of focus on community-building events, like movie nights or paint-and-sips. But this year, we want to be a lot more focused on advocacy and sort of getting into the political atmosphere of things.”
One of the ideas floating around BSU’s radar is promoting voter registration. They also want to expand their reach to the Black community outside of the Ithaca College campus through volunteering and involvement with organizations downtown like the Southside Community Center and GIAC (Greater Ithaca Activities Center).
Overall, they intend to be a space for Black students from all backgrounds and ethnicities to be able to come together and feel uplifted. When asked about the history of IC BSU, Zoe referenced ALS (Afro-Latin Society) and the 1970 protests. “Though that organization no longer exists, we’re sort of the children of that one organization, as well as all the other identity-based, race-based orgs on campus, like Poder or SOCA, or ASA – we are all sort of descended from that one group. And there’s a lot we can learn from that history.”
Alefiya is a third-year journalism major. She can be reached at [email protected]