Last May, Coppell High School juniors Sedem Butasi and Brandalyn Veail alongside sophomore Sweetie Ansah came together in an effort to instill unity among the African American students at Coppell High School, forming the Black Student Union. 

As three young girls feeling stressed due to the daily endeavors of high school, they felt as if there should be an organization enabling them to feel comfortable going to each other—people who understand their backgrounds and perspectives. Prior to the 2022-2023 school year, the three presidents of this club spent time researching to find a sponsor, selecting eight club officer positions and coming up with ways to properly launch the Black Student Union by August of 2022.

“Our goal was to bring the Black community together because even in our classes, we started to notice there were very few of us with the same skin color,” Butasisaid. “We all want to encourage each other to stay motivated and to have a safe space to feel connected through our culture, along with working together to raise funds for various charities.”

The club’s membership is not exclusive to just African American students, but open to all students who want to learn more about their culture. The Black Student Union focuses on uniting students from different cultural backgrounds and teaching members more about significant events in African American history, such as Black excellence. 

Since this club was recently incepted at CHS, the Black Student Union was promptly advertised through the club expo and by word of mouth. With approximately 20 members, they hold club meetings every other week in their sponsor, anatomy and physiology teacher, Ray Pool’s room. 

“When it was just us three trying to make this an official club, we realized we underestimated how much there is to do and that we literally have no idea what we’re doing to get everyone involved,” Ansah said. “We wanted there to be a sufficient number of officer positions to have good ideas and for the club to have a stronger leadership team.”

Partnering with the African American studies class, the Black Student Union is making the most out of Black History Month in February. It is holding volunteer events, including attracting students’ attention through a football and basketball tournament with the tickets’ funds fully directed towards the Black student union.

“This club makes us all feel as if we are a family and I enjoy it because I get to meet all these people I have things in common with, so the club is bringing us together,” Veail said. “It encourages our members to respect everyone’s opinions, and the skills we learn in this club help us build a better future at our school.”

Furthermore, the Black Student Union’s overall goal is to unite the Black community as a whole and teach those interested the importance of their heritage. 

“The reason we are so determined to give back to our community is because of all the historic events and people that our teachers don’t inform us enough about in our history lessons or give as much value towards,” Ansah said. “The book The New Jim Crow Laws opened my eyes to what reality actually is, along with teaching me so much about America’s society and hierarchy. However, our teachers tell us these things like it’s in the past, when we see the opposite occur daily.” 

Follow Rhea Choudhary (@rhea_choud) and @CHSCampusNews on Twitter