By Alliyah Bidwell
The Black Student Union members at Northwestern say Black History Month is a meaningful time of year to learn more about valuable people.
Club member Aja Johnson said she takes the month of February to admire Black people in history who have made significant achievements.
“My father is the one who inspires me and taught me to be proud to be myself, and he educated me about Black History Month and what is means and how to be prideful about it,” Johnson said. “I look up to Harriet Tubman because Nicki Minaj talked about her and how she took slaves to freedon, and it inspired me.”
Club member Shakira Lane said: “My mother is the one who inspires me because she always made sure I have what I need even when she may be going through stuff. I had trouble making friends, and it was just because I was different, and she said it’s OK to be different because you don’t want to fit in with everyone and be fake so just make yourself happy,” Shakira Lane said.
She said Black History Month is important to her because she couldn’t be where she is right now, a Black female student in college trying to get into the medical field, without the people who came before her.
“As a student, if you want to celebrate Black History Month, you can look up facts online and even dig deep into the history in Oklahoma, which you might not know that happened back in the day,” Lane said.
Lane said she looks up to Simone Biles, an Olympic gymnast, because she is doing great in a sport that is not popular in the black community. Despite the obstacles that she has faced, she didn’t let that get in her way, and she is on top of what she does.
“Simone Biles makes me feel like I can do it because, if she can do it, then I can do great things just like she did,” Lane said.