Gaucho Athletics Celebrates and Promotes Black History Month
Four UCSB student-athletes give their thoughts on the celebration.
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| UCSB
Athletics celebrates and promotes Black History Month. |
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - UCSB Athletics is proud to promote the celebration of Black History Month as part of one of two recently created programs aimed at providing an outstanding all-around experience for Gaucho student-athletes and to reach out to the campus and Santa Barbara community.
The promotion of black history falls under the "BE Great" life skills program, which was recently unveiled by Director of Athletics Mark Massari and Executive Associate Athletics Director Diane O'Brien.
"We strive to be a positive influence in our community and recognizing diversity is a big part of that," said Massari.
As part of raising awareness of black history, some Gaucho athletes express their thoughts on the significance of Black History Month .
D.J. Posley, Men's Basketball
"For me, Black History Month is a celebration and recognition of
the struggle that black people have had throughout American
history. But it's not just a celebration of the struggles, it is a
celebration of the achievements of black people in this country,
achievements that have made my life better. Dr. King (Dr. Martin
Luther King, Jr.) is one of my heroes. The things he did set a
precedent and got the civil rights movement going. Dr. King proved
that important changes could be achieved through non-violent acts.
In terms of sports, Jackie Robinson is a hero. It was hard for him
because he was such a proud man, but he knew that he had to turn
the other cheek and put up with some things to make it better for
those who followed."
Kayla Smith, Women's Track & Field
"It (Black History Month) is recognition of achievement and
progress, but also the realization that we need to continue working
towards greater success. When an African-American can be in
(elected) office it says a lot, but there are many more reasons to
celebrate. I think it also helps us understand that we have a
common goal of equality for all. The fact that it is a month is
also important. If it were a one-day celebration, it would be easy
to overlook, but a month cannot be overlooked and gives us a great
opportunity to truly realize our successes, achievements, and where
we need to go. A great example of someone who I look to celebrate
during this month is Rosa Parks. Everyone knows the basic story of
her standing up for herself, but in that period of time, it was
really a great achievement."
Jesse Byrd, Men's Basketball
"Black History Month is a celebration of what my people have
accomplished. It's an opportunity to take stock of what the
American Negro has done for this country. Celebrating black history
gives us time to recognize a lot of things. Right now is an
important time in our history. What (President) Obama has achieved
is incredible and it shows how far my people have come."
Whitney Warren, Women's Basketball
"I think it helps us show appreciation for all the hard work,
courage and assertiveness that African-Americans took. It gives me
the opportunity to appreciate and understand the struggles that
people before me fought for when they were not able to reap the
immediate results but in the long run I'm able to. I appreciate the
struggles and pressures they went through and I didn't. I never had
to go to sit-ins. I have a white mom and a black dad and when they
were younger and looking for apartments, my mom would go and look
and they would tell her they had vacancies and she would come back
with my dad and they would say there were no vacancies. Or my dad
would go and they would say no and then my mom would go to the same
place and they would say `Yeah, we have vacancies.'
"My heroes? Aside from my parents, it's my brother. He sacrificed a lot. My brother always looked over my sister and I. My mom coached a lot and my dad worked a lot, but my brother taught me a lot. He led by example. He taught me to be loyal, to have a tight-knit family and that we would be there for each other."
For more on UCSB Athletics' BE Great initiative click here.
Black History Month is a national celebration that takes place each February. To read more about Black History Month, click here.