Uhuru na umoja wednesday, november 20, 2019 an ethnic supplement to the collegian
The Black Student voice of California State University, Fresno, since 1969
Harambee Room Revitalization and Renovations
By Darelle Harvey Black folks on the Fresno State campus usually are scattered and separate from one another, save for a few groupings of us. And those groupings usually come out of people that already know each other or out of the school’s necessity. The only place dedicated to drawing Black students together and allowing us to really express ourselves is a room in the Cross Cultural and Gender Center (CCGC) known as the Harambee room. It is a room that is often talked about in the circles of BSU and NAACP, but, sadly, hardly anywhere else. Which is a major shame because the room itself is a veritable “Room of Requirement,” (all my Harry Potter
fans get that reference.) It is a place that offers peace, quiet, a resting place for us, even offering pillows and blankets allowing us to sleep. As Ju’Juan Johnson puts it the room is “...more like a home space...it’s like a home away from home, like a library away from the library.” The room can also be reserved for events as long as students or faculty meet with CCGC representatives to set up the room at the time needed. The uses are for study groups, for club meetings, even for small events. However, we still have the issue of the space not being utilized, because most don’t know about the room at all. Two years ago, there was an event known as “Turnt Up Tuesdays” held every Tuesday night.
On those nights, the room would be packed, there were people going there, taking in the free snacks and candy available, they were studying and getting their work done and socializing and meeting people, “...it used to bring, at least, 20 to 30 of the AfricanAmerican students on campus to the Harambee room…it brought a vibe to the room.” After the event stopped being held, we largely stopped paying attention to the room. But, in spite of this, there is still a vibrant collection of us that hit the room daily. On any given day, groups of people can be found in there, chatting and laughing. There is a sense that the people in the room are definitely where they feel they need to be.
Even jokes like, “we can’t be Black nowhere on campus,” pass through these walls, making light of the situation that we don’t feel there’s a place for us. And that brings us to the renovation of the Harambee room itself. The room has decorations and pictures on the walls, but the room walls seem dry. An eggshell off-white on all walls feel a bit bland, but what we want to see are more depictions and artwork of our accomplishments and things to inspire us for the coming future. Some have mentioned perhaps having a small speaker for music in the room while students study which would make the Harambee room more inviting to the students. The room will be shutting down in late November
so it can be ready in time for Dead Days, so look for that in the Harambee room! The Harambee room is located in the Thomas Administration Building rm. 109. It is here and waiting for us! We have the power to use the room however we want, if anyone wants to make an event like Turnt Up Tuesdays to get people into the room, speak to Ju’Juan Johnson or Vanessa Brown in the Thomas Administration Building rm. 110. Remember, CCGC and the room are open Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 8-5. Tuesdays and Thursdays are open until 7 pm. And whatever you decide to do with the room, always remember to promote the event in the room! Good luck out there y’all!
Food Insecurity By T.J. Taylor A problem 42% of all CSU students face daily is food insecurity. It can be tough to manage the energy necessary to sustain an adequate amount of effort at school, work, and extracurricular activities while attending college full-time. Studies show, it becomes even more difficult without food security. Food security is NOT having a secret service agent for your refrigerator to prevent theft, rather it is the access to three meals a day. Food security can be defined as
the state of having reliable access to a sufficient quantity of affordable, nutritious food. The lack of food security is known as food insecurity. Food insecurity is prevalent here at Fresno State as well as nationwide. Food insecurity can negatively affect academic achievement and leave a toll on students’ physical and mental health. With many working students juggling paying for necessities like rent, transportation, and tuition, the budget for food is often minimal. These factors compile thus creating stress, anxiety, and sometimes depres-
sion for students. Food insecurity can be linked to lower GPAs as students with food security have less inactive days . With 66% of Black students dealing with food insecurity, this topic needs a campaign to bring awareness of this phenomenon. To combat food insecurity, the resources made available must be shared. College students working 20 or more hours a week can qualify for CalFresh and receive federal aid of up to $192 a month for financial assistance towards groceries. You can apply for this program at the Student Cupboard on campus,
which is located in room 144 in the Industrial Tech Building. This location also distributes free nutritious food on school days. Their distribution hours for this semester are 11:00 a.m. through 4:00 p.m. on Monday and Friday, 11:00 a.m. through 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday and Thursday, and 10:00 a.m. through 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday. All you need is your student ID to checkout. Food is often plentiful as they average about 198 student visits per day. Another resource is the Bulldog Pantry, located across campus on Shaw and Sierra Madre that distributes fruits, vegetables, bread,
and canned goods every other Saturday from 9:00 a.m through 10:30 a.m. The Cross Cultural and Gender Center, located east of the Kennel Bookstore often has pizza and snacks readily available as well. Food insecurity is common so do not feel alone or ashamed. If anyone you know seems to have low morale, do not hesitate to ask them if they have eaten yet or if they’re eating enough everyday. Help yourself and others to the resources made available on campus and look out for your peers if you are able. Nutrition is vital to us all.
wednesday, november 20, 2019
Sistah to Sistah
Uhuru Na Umoja
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Student Health Center By Kemaea Goins The Student Health Center is a medical clinic on campus that provides various services to students that assists them in maintaining a healthy lifestyle while they are staying in school. The center prides itself on creating a safe environment and ensuring that students have a health outlet on campus. The vision of the center is to create lifelong behaviors and attitudes that students can take with them after they graduate from Fresno State. The center is located in between the dorms and the lab school near Shaw and Barton streets. They provide a numerous amount of services; minor to moderate illnesses, diagnostics: X-rays and labs, health and wellness education, and free group and individual counseling services to students at any time. Making an appointment is very simple, after visiting the website, a student just needs to log-in and request an appointment and the center will advise on what the next steps to take care of are. Appointments are always available and walk- ins are always available to students.
By Kemaea Goins
Fresno State’s Cross Cultural and Gender Center offers a wonderful opportunity for Black women on campus to feel heard and seen by women who are similar to them. Sistah to Sistah! is a weekly discussion group which highlights the issues and celebrations that black college women face on campus. Every woman of any race is welcomed to come to any meeting as well. It is a safe space in which women can relate to each other and speak their truths without fear of judgement. Each week there is a different discussion topic. Vanessa Brown is a student employee at the CCGC and she leads the group each week. Vanessa Brown states that, “(She) feels like it is a group where you support others and be supported. If you are going through anything this is a group that you can come, share and feel comfortable doing so”. If you are looking for a loving community please feel free to stop by and attend the weekly session.
The health center is extremely convenient because you can schedule your appointment right before class or after and just walk on over! It does not get any better than that. The hours of the center are Monday-Friday from 8 AM to 4:45 PM. There is a pharmacy available in the center where students can pick up medicine prescribed by the doctor or the student can request to have a different location. The pharmacy has lots of medications, sexual health products, lotions, razors, soaps, etc. Black students are a small minority on campus and a lot of them do not utilize the health center due to being misinformed about its opportunities. It is already paid for by the tuition rates so it would be a waste of money for us not to go to ensure our physical and mental health is up to par. Students stay in school when their health is strong. We need to make sure we are checking into those appointments. Please go ahead and visit the health center soon.
Black Thanksgiving By Kemaea Goins In honor of Thanksgiving season, here are a few statements that Black college students at Fresno State have made to show how Thanksgiving makes them feel and why it’s important to their culture. Everyone please enjoy the holidays and ensure that family time is a priority. There are food banks in Fresno that will ensure that you have a hot meal on the holiday if you need assistance as well. “Thanksgiving, to me, is the time that I get to take a step back and realize exactly how much my family means to me. My family is always constantly busy, but on this day , my family pauses and takes a moment to appreciate one another.” “Thanksgiving means for me and my family to spend time together and be thankful to have another year to see each other and eat together, thankful to have food to eat. The turkey, mac & cheese, and stuffing is the most anticipated food and it has to be made perfectly.” “To my family Thanksgiving is about being thankful for all the blessings that God has given us. Thanksgiving to us is also about spending time with loved ones over a big blessed meal.” “I look forward to Thanksgiving because as everyone continues to grow and do their own things in life it gets harder to come together. Thanksgiving and the holidays are the best times and common times to come together.”
Third MLK Book Club Kick off By Dessalines Yamoussou
The Kick off to this semester’s MLK Bookclub was October 21st, 2019. MLK stands for Mentoring, Leadership, and Knowledge. It was a day of excitement for the club and Mr. Jamaal Washington. Mr. Washington works in Supportnet. Supportnet is located in the basement of the library in the learning center. Mr. Washington in the past has been the facilitator of the MLK bookclub but this semester the Bookclub has made a tremendous and exciting change. The MLK bookclub is now an integral part of The Onyx Black male collective led by President Dessalines Yamoussou. You do not have to be a Black male to join the book club. Any male looking for a place to form exciting conversations around books is welcome.
This semesters book is “Our America.” Our America is the real true life story of 2 teenage boys Lloyd Jones and LeAlan Newman who are given tape recorders by Chicago Report David Isay. He did so in the hopes of getting a look at the lives of children living in harsh conditions in the housing projects in Chicago. The piece was going to be aired on WBEZ in Chicago. What he did not anticipate would change his and the kids lives forever. Lloyd and LeAlan would investigate a murder. The Program would inspire 2 documentaries and a Hollywood movie. If you have any questions on how you can get involved with the book club here on Fresno States campus. Contact Dessalines Yamoussou at dessalinesyamoussou@gmail.com.
Where is the Love? By T.J. Taylor On October 5th, 2019, Fresno State’s Student Involvement and Cross Cultural & Gender Center held its first of four demonstrations against mass violence titled, Where is the Love? This program was made to honor the innocent lives lost from domestic terrorism in the past decade. The inaugural ceremony was dedicated to the nine Black lives taken in the Charleston shooting that took place on June 17, 2015. On display were candles with pictures of the names and ages of the nine victims: Clementa Pinckney (41), Cynthia Marie Graham Hurd (54), Susie Jackson (87), Ethel Lee Lance (70), Depayne Middleton-Doctor (49), Tywanza Sanders (26), Daniel L. Simmons (74), Sharonda ColemanSingleton (45), and Myra Thompson (59). Students were allowed to write and share their thoughts. The memoir
of victims were a way to commemorate the lives lost rather than glorify Dylann Roof in any shape or form. His name and identity however was included to bring some accountability to the mass murders by demented white supremacists that are happening daily in America. This demonstration similar to gun control will not completely be the solution to mass shootings but the purpose of this event remind people of the root of these occurrences which is mass hate. This hate crime would not have happened without the racist white supremacy ideology that fueled it. “Where is the Love?” is the question that best sums the pain and heartache felt from mass shootings. The bullets end lives of the victims of gun violence but it is hate that creates these incidence of mass violence happening daily.
wednesday, november 20, 2019
Uhuru Na Umoja
Entrepreneur of the Month Sonya Marie
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Featured Athlete of the Month Ahmad Kirkland
By T.J. Taylor
By T.J. Taylor
This issue’s featured entrepreneur of the month is the ambitious Sonya Marie. Ms. Marie is a 3rd year student from Los Angeles. The Inglewood native is a business management major with a minor in fashion and merchandise. Many come to college without an idea with what they will get a degree in, however this was a major that she knew she would have since her freshman year of high school. She has been infatuated with fashion since the tender age of five. Sonya Marie works as the Ambassador of College Girls and President of Fresno State’s College Girls. This is an intercollegiate organization that makes comfortable attire to be worn around campus with aspirations to open a shop in Los Angeles in the near future. With hoodies and crewnecks presently priced at $35-$40 clothes based out of LA and t-shirts for $20 online, College Girls is a business booming with profits. It is currently on 11 college campuses including Howard, Tuskegee, USC, and UCLA to name a few. Currently, their grey crew neck with pink writing is the best seller. Sonya is dedicated towards her passion and never takes a break from fashion. She is the first student coordinator fashion assistant in the Career Development Center on campus. She styles and designs students at the Clothing Closet, an amazing resource to use. She also works as a personal stylist for fashion shows and photo shoots. As a head student assistant of the information technology department on the first floor of the Henry Madden Library. “If you fall, get back up, dust yourself off and keep going.” is a mantra Sonya Marie lives by and keeps her moving towards her goals.
This issues featured athlete of the month is Ahmad Kirkland. A first year freshman that runs for the track & field team from Chowchilla, California. He is a computer science major with aspirations of making video games. His goal this season is to get to a 10.5 second time for the 100 meter race. Originally a baseball player, Kirkland traded his baseball cleats for track & field spikes only two years ago in his senior year of high school. It is an uphill battle with nothing but room for improvement. He is a tenacious competitor with no desire to quit. Some of his favorite track athletes are Noah Lyles, Christian Coleman, Usain Bolt, and Yohan Blake. Christian Coleman in particular is a main inspiration, who is one of the fastest people in the world at the 100 meter race despite his 5’9 height. Noah Lyles is one of his favorites to watch due to his seemingly effortless stride and form in the 200 meter race. He refers to Usain Bolt and Yohan Blake as the “GOATs” or greatest of all time. With the major of computer science, he wants to create and program for Namco, the creators of Dark Souls and Pac-Man. He visions of working with a team on a openworld adventure storyline driven game with different decisions that lead to the conclusion of the game. As an anime fanatic, he would want his games aesthetic to be inspired by anime. His all time favorite video games are Halo and Battlefront II. Ahmad Kirkland lives to put his best foot forward in all his actions and his a will within that prohibits him from ever quitting. He is a man that “walks by faith, not by sight”. Ahmad has better days and blessings to look forward to and he is not wasting a minute getting closer to them.
Staff Editorial Staff Advisor Angel Langridge Editor Staff Reporter Staff Reporter Staff Reporter
T.J. Taylor Darelle Harvey Kemaea Goins Dessailines Yamoussou
If you have any questions, comments, ideas, poems or stories you want to submit, email them to tjtaylor98@mail.fresnostate.edu.
wednesday, november 20, 2019
Uhuru Na Umoja
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Yes Yes Y’All Poetry Death’s Thought Process By Darelle Harvey Sometimes, I think about death
Regardless of bullet resistance
Attached to a wicked grin the width of the world
It’s about “not laughing too loud”
Waiting behind an infinite sea of eyes
Regardless of job solvency
Living in a great rift of a throat
But reading in my car can be “too loud”
And the laugh of a loa Ghede waits to guide me to the underworld
It’s about being alert and aware of surroundings
The laughter’s vibrations settle
But looking calm and collected
Over hoodies and sweatpants
It’s about moving to places that do not benefit me in any way
Over busted tail lights
But trying to make a way for the ones who come after
Over alphabet collectives
It’s about being screamed at, not talked to
Over an attempt to steady my voice
But learning the language and the behavior
Over “Sir, calm down”
Life’s like a game of death
Over the dark too intense to be calmed
Life’s about how long I can keep 2 steps ahead
I always thought life was about what I could do
Life’s like being compared to a dusty muppet
Turns out, it’s about what I will do
Life is knowing what tokenism is
It’s about what I won’t do
Life is being a soldier in a war on two-or-more fronts
It’s about what I can’t do
Getting besieged from all sides, society without, family within
I thought life was about making every move myself own
There’s so much of everybody else, I can’t even hear myself anymore
But no
Being swallowed by this maelstrom of demands
It’s about making myself conform
But I ain’t dead yet
But opening myself up
Because I think about death
It’s about wearing clothes that do not match my personality at all
By Kemaea Goins
By Kemaea Goins Finals week is approaching We should be content
Sweat will soon be building up On our foreheads
Finals week is approaching
The library will soon be annoying full Computers will run slower
But we dread the week of tests that sometimes
When the heart sees its reflection There is an excitement A warmth
A Black Girl’s song is singing church hymns with granny
Like a flower bud in the spring
These are the memories that recollect for a black girl
Everything the reflection does
These memories are what makes her into
Every smile
She becomes a Black Woman
Every scowl
A Black Woman’s song is holding her newborn baby girl
Every tear
All these things make a black girl
But it is all we can focus on
By Darelle Harvey
A Black Girls song is combs and ribbons
A Black Girl’s song is double dutch on concrete
We just finished midterms
Make or break our grades
Wish
A Black Girls Song
Finals
We cannot wait for the semester to end
To continue life
A growing feeling
And when she goes off into the world
The heart leaps for
Something beautiful and magnificent
Every laugh
Now this Black Woman is singing a different song
Every scream
A Black Woman’s song is hoping that her Black Girl’s song is sweet
Like a child watching a favorite program
We will hope to be ready
Finals week is approaching
The heart wants to see it all
And so, like the most diligent romantic The heart hatches plans and schemes Fishing for wishes
The Dream
Like marlin dreams
By Darelle Harvey There’s this dream
Sometimes rainclouds
Those ideas
But there is not have none
Nothing worries or troubles me
But it’s hardly a dystopia
More creatures
Good vibes ripple from music and back
In it I’m happy
I don’t think about food Or clothes Or shelter
I instead think about my craft About words And worlds
Of wondrous happenings out of time Sometimes sunshines
It’s not a utopia Crime is there
But not constant
Technology enriches Lives and minds Ideas are sprung
From every movement From every creature And in turn
Yield more movements The world enjoys a slow progress Slow, but steady
Citizens contemplate consequence
Ceding cash considering copious courses Arrival is mutually beneficial Though
There is still have Still have not
There is not take all again
Wild is respected
Normal has no context
And my happiness can be no greater And then
The dream ends