A group of students gathered on October 21 to write a Plenary resolution advocating for an official Black Studies major at Bryn Mawr College, an offering that is not currently available for students. Thus far, their resolution has passed through Rep-Co Plenary. Its future remains to be determined by the student body.
The Black Studies major Plenary resolution, written by Elliot London ‘28 and supported by Angelique Lee ‘27, Kaili Martinez-Beasley ‘27, Zara Kepler ‘28 and Celia Perkins ‘29, outlines a plan involving a name change from Africana Studies to Black Studies, establishing an official major within the department, and hiring two new professors with specializations in Black Queer Feminist scholarship. The student leaders have also worked closely with Assistant Professor Paul Joseph López Oro, Director of the Africana Studies Program at Bryn Mawr, to create the proposal.
The Bryn Mawr College mission statement affirms that “Equity and inclusion serve as the engine for excellence and innovation.” According to Kaili Martinez-Beasley ‘27, having an official Black Studies major is compatible with these institutional priorities. “A big part of why we are pushing for this resolution is so that Bryn Mawr can live up to its initiatives of both equity and inclusivity,” said Martinez-Beasley. “I wish I had the opportunity to take the major, so I would love it to be available for other people who realize that it’s a path that they would want to pursue.”
Elliot London ‘28 expressed the urgency for Bryn Mawr to support the Black Studies Major in light of the hostile political climate in the United States that actively dissuades colleges and universities from continuing their DEI-related initiatives. “As the humanities are oppressed in higher education and there is an increased trend in using humanities-based subjects to obfuscate the active realities and histories of this country, it’s all the more important to highlight Black Studies as a discipline,” said London.
In comparison with similar institutions, Bryn Mawr’s lack of an official Black Studies major can be perceived as a shortcoming. “It’s very important that Bryn Mawr continues moving and progressing forward alongside its other institutions,” said Celia Perkins ‘29. “A lot of small liberal arts colleges already have Black Studies majors, and Bryn Mawr does not have one. In that sense, we are falling behind.” Perkins noted that Swarthmore College, for example, offers an official Black Studies major while its Tri-College Consortium partners, Bryn Mawr and Haverford, do not.
Zara Kepler ‘28 stressed the need for a Black Studies major to support students’ intellectual development. “[A Black Studies major] is important in general for everyone’s intellectual gain,” said Kepler. “The students at Bryn Mawr have been consistently bringing Black Studies thinking to their classes, but without a fully-fledged department. There is institutional gain for them as well.”
On October 29, the Black Studies major resolution was passed almost unanimously by Rep-Co Plenary, with only two members who abstained from voting and two who voted against the resolution. The student leaders of the plenary resolution will be hosting a Black Studies Major teach-in on November 11 as part of the 2020 Strike Remembrance Week and will be tabling on November 13 and 14 to raise support for their initiative. They encourage all students to attend Fall Plenary on November 16.
