Amidst the reds, pinks and whites that usually adorn many February calendars are three words that seem to get overlooked on campus: Black History Month.

February is Black History Month and UW-Eau Claire is recognizing it with several events.

“Diversity is lacking here,” said junior Persia Davis, vice president of the Black and Latino Student Association. “Students of color organizing themselves is necessary for both social support and improving the statistics.”

More always can be done to promote diversity recognition on campus, Davis said.

“Funding, however, is a problem … a problem for all aspects of the UW System right now,” she said.

Even though funding can create limitations, she said not everything costs money.

“For example, every professor could take one day this month to spend some class time exploring the significance of African-Americans to their field or the significance of their field to African-Americans,” Davis said. “That would be a great way to promote diversity.”

BLSA will show “Four Little Girls,” a film directed by Spike Lee, at 6 p.m. Tuesday in Davies Theater.

Davis said she hopes that students will go to the movie to learn about the four little girls who were killed in a 1963 church bombing.

The bombing was committed by the Ku Klux Klan in Birmingham, Ala.

Junior Rachel Lockett, BLSA treasurer, said the club puts on the events to help the campus become more aware of black and Latino issues.

“We discuss and focus on bettering ourselves and the university,” Lockett said.

Events put on by BLSA, including the events scheduled for Black History Month, need to be advertised more around campus so students become aware of what the month is all about, she said.

Davis encouraged students to attend a forum featuring Judy Richardson, producer of a notable series of civil rights films called “Eyes on the Prize.” The forum will be held at 7:30 p.m., Feb. 20 in Zorn Arena.

All of these events received some help from the American Ethnic Coordinating Office (AECO).

“We kind of helped pull these events together,” said Jesse Dixon, who is the Student Services Coordinator of the AECO.

Involvement with BLSA almost seems natural to Davis as a student of African-American background, particularly on a campus like Eau Claire, she said.

When Davis was a freshman, BLSA was a home base for her, she said.

“Most of my closest friends are those I have met through this organization,” she said.

BLSA currently has about 15 members, Lockett said.

“And, by the way, we are always looking for white members,” Davis said.
“We all need multicultural connections.”