For the past two years, Waltham High School’s Black Student Union (BSU) has become a vital group for many students. With the mission statement of “trying to uplift Black voices and just spread Blackness throughout Waltham High” according to BSU co-president junior Felicia Nicholas, it’s no wonder it has gained so much popularity.

The BSU had been in the works for some time prior to 2020. The murder of George Floyd and the rise in Black Lives Matter protests during 2020 was what really created some urgency within the student union’s creators. BSU co-president junior Christie Valme says that this is when they realized that BSU “had to be made.” In addition to this, BSU student leader Sonya Patel says that a general focus within Waltham High School on white students, white perspectives and white voices prompted the creation of this club to counteract that. And anyone will tell you that Waltham High, specifically the students, is far from perfect in terms of making a welcoming and actively anti-racist environment. Social media pages used for exposing racist behavior had featured screen shots of Waltham students’ racist messages. Behavior in the school like this not only brought around the BSU, but also other affinity groups such as the Asian Student Union and the Latin Student Union. 

With the club only just getting off the ground, the first year held a more serious tone in response to the racially motivated hate crimes and violence specifically during the 2020/2021 time period. Nicholas recognizes that these initial meetings “brought in the demographic we were looking for, but there are just so many students that want to celebrate Blackness.” Student leaders quickly realized that the serious tone is not the only one they wanted the club to take on. Vice president Henry’Elle Pierre says that, “This year we’re trying to make it more fun and inviting but still have serious conversations.” It’s important that the club finds a balance between serious meetings and having more fun ones. The ability to meet in person has helped make coming up with engaging activities much easier. Meeting activities have  included Black Family Feud, Heads Up: Black History Edition, a karaoke night with songs by black artists, and a slumber party to celebrate Kwanzaa. 

BSU also had spent time crafting slides for homeroom teachers to show their students during Black History Month about Black history after administrators expressed a need for additional resources. The creators of these slides were disappointed to hear that their hard work had been wasted since not many teachers had actually gone through the slideshows with their students. This raised some questions, at least among student leaders, about why the teachers feel uncomfortable talking about the affinity groups. Pierre says “they support the BSU, they just don’t know how to show it sometimes.” And during the interview Nicholas made a comparison to how affinity groups differ from other extracurricular activities at WHS: “The process looks a lot more different in terms of getting certain things approved.” They do, however, want to acknowledge the great support from other administrators in Waltham High such Ms. Pena and Ms. Moore. 

BSU student leaders point out the many benefits of being a part of BSU, such as gained confidence, the ability to be vocal, and having a safe environment. They encourage other students to join and expand their ever growing club. Meetings are held every other Tuesday after school. Make sure to pay attention to announcements and follow whs.bsu.club on Instagram so you know when the meetings are!