Elmira High School has a BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) Student Union working towards creating a more inclusive environment at Elmira.
According to Kizha Davidson, who works for the Young Women’s Christian Association of the United States of America (YWCA), it is “intended to center the experiences of Black and Indigenous groups and demonstrate solidarity between communities of color.”
BIPOC also addresses the issue that people of color face different types of discrimination and prejudice. It emphasizes that systematic racism occurs.
“Lastly and significantly, Black and Indigenous individuals and communities still bear the impact of slavery and genocide,” according to Davidson.
The student union strives to show the “specific violence, cultural erasure, and discrimination experienced by Black and Indigenous people.”
Falcon News contacted the BIPOC advisors, Spanish teacher Señorita Snider and U.S. History teacher Mrs. Wright-Rendon, to ask them some questions pertaining to their mission and group.
Question: What is BIPOC?
Answer: “BIPOC stands for Black, Indigenous, People of Color and, for the purposes of our group, a Person of Color is defined as non-white, including: Asian, Pacific Islander, Latinx, and biracial/multiracial identities.”
Q: Why did this club start?
A: “This group originated last year with a Black Student Union group that thought it would be important to expand it to include all BIPOC students at our school.”
Q: What are your goals?
A: “This group is still new, but our goals are to create a space where these students can feel comfortable expressing themselves, as well as talk about any problems at our school, and potentially take actions to improve inclusivity and address issues at our school facing this group of students.”
Q: How many members do you have?
A: “Our membership is small, but growing as this group is getting started, so now is the perfect time to join!”
Q: Where does your club meet? At what time?
A: “Regular participation is not required so you can come to meetings as frequently as you want… If you are a BIPOC student and you are interested in joining or participating in this group, please feel free to contact Señorita Snider or Mrs. Wright-Rendon for information about meeting times or to be added to the Schoology group.”
