The Black Student Union is a cultural organization at Texas A&M University-Commerce that serves Black and African American students and faculty. 

Primarily, their goal is to enhance educational opportunities for Black students and to raise awareness of political and cultural issues faced by the demographic.  

“BSU is a great org bringing awareness to things that are going on around the world dealing with Black excellence or the problems that can be solved,” Derrick Sneed, junior, said. “I heard about BSU at ManeStreet. I liked the variety of events they offered for interacting with students.” 

The first Black Student Union was founded in 1966 at San Francisco State University, a primarily white institution. 

According to JaKyra Givens, junior, it was a safe place for the Black community to gather after segregation. She also heard about BSU at ManeStreet in 2019. 

“I like the community that it builds. It brings Black students closer to one another,” Givens said. 

Black Student Union is open to all students, though, regardless of race. 

“We have general body meetings every other week on Thursdays at 5:30 in Traditions at the Student Center,” Givens said. 

But the BSU extends beyond the Black community and the Commerce campus, reaching out to other organizations, raising awareness of global issues and doing community service. 

Cultural organizations play a large role on campuses, surrounding students with similar individuals and exposing them to other groups as well. 

“I feel like diversity isn’t taught that much in the classroom, so that’s where the organizations pick up the slack. They aren’t closed off to one specific culture so all of the students here have the opportunity to experience different cultures,” Givens added.