Past BSM members return for 45th anniversary

Decades after the civil rights movement, past and present members of UNC’s Black Student Movement say the organization is still relevant.

Group members have spent the week welcoming back past members for its 45th anniversary as they discuss the future role of the organization.

On Wednesday night, the group held a historical exhibition where past members spoke to current members about their time with BSM.

Photos and past issues of “Black Ink,” the group’s magazine, lined the walls, highlighting the group’s storied history.

Eric Campbell, who was BSM president during the 2011-12 school year and is now an account strategist for Google, said BSM is needed to give black students a voice.

“A lot of people think we live in a post-racial society,” he said. “But we know that’s not the case.”

“We’re trying to move forward, promoting black ideas and culture. It doesn’t mean we’re promoting that and demeaning other races.”

Alexis Davis, the current president of BSM, said the group has important work to do in ensuring equality for minority students, including in the admissions process.

“I think Black Student Movement is still relevant as an organization because Carolina is not a perfect University,” she said.

She said this year’s freshman class has fewer African-Americans than the previous year’s, an issue of concern for the organization.

“That’s something we’re definitely trying to keep our eye on, and make sure that it doesn’t happen again,” Davis said.

“If it happens more than once — in 10 years — who knows how many minority students will be in Carolina?”

Past members of BSM at the exhibition also spoke about the pressures of having to represent the African-American community on campus.

“You feel like you’re always being watched,” Campbell said.

Speakers said they felt pressured to represent black culture favorably and dispel negative stereotypes as students at UNC.

Davis said she feels those pressures as well.

“As BSM president, it’s very stressful simply because when people ask me questions about the black community, I have to stop and think about what I’m going to say because my opinion might not necessarily be everyone’s opinion,” she said.

Dexter Robinson, a 2006 graduate, said it was important black students represent themselves personally as well.

Robinson was once co-chairman of the BSM subcommittee, Emphasizing Brotherhood Across Campus Effectively.

“A lot of people don’t understand — it’s not about a black voice,” Robinson said.

“It’s about your voice as a Carolina student and how you can come together to have that voice,” he said.

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