Sitting back down after the Pledge of Allegiance, students listen in for the afternoon announcements. After wishing our sports teams good luck, Coppell High School students sit for a quick lesson in history.

The Black Student Union was founded by Coppell senior Sweetie Ansah, and her friends Sedem Buatsi and Brandalyn Veail. The club brings people of all races together to raise awareness about and celebrate Black culture.

During Black History Month in February, BSU takes initiative and speaks briefly about one Black historical figure each day after the announcements. Ansah thinks the education of high schoolers about Black culture is paramount.

“It’s important that people know about historical Black figures because they contribute so much to our society and they haven’t gotten their credit for it in the general population,” Ansah said. “It’s important to highlight over the announcements that this is something you use everyday, did you know a Black person made it?’”

Typically when Black historical figures come up in history, they are used to tie into the discussion of slavery and its brutality or highlighting Civil War points.

“When we talk about Black people in history, it’s mostly slavery so rewriting that narrative is important in letting people know that this isn’t the only thing that we did,” Ansah said.

Amidst changing the way that people might think about Black people historically, BSU makes an effort to cover less known historical figures as well.

“We want to make a point of talking about historical Black figures that aren’t as widely known such as Claudette Colvin, who was the first Black woman to stand against segregation on buses, even though it’s commonly known as Rosa Parks,” Ansah said.

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