Black History

Hamline’s Black Student Collective 50 years strong

MINNESOTA SPOKESMAN-RECORDER — As the first student of color organization in the state’s oldest college, Hamline’s Black Student Collective has served to empower some of the state’s most prolific Black leaders and activists

Published

7 years ago

March 7, 2019

Oakland Post

Stephenetta (isis) Harmon

As the first student of color organization in the state’s oldest college, Hamline’s Black Student Collective (BSC) has served to empower some of the state’s most prolific Black leaders and activists — including Juanita C. Freeman, Washington County’s first Black judge, and Anika Bowie, vice president of NAACP Minneapolis and current candidate for St. Paul City Council.

Now, the BSC is set to celebrate 50 years of service this weekend.

Black student unions across the country have proven to be effective support systems for Black students entering higher education. Whether first-generation or part of a familial legacy, Blacks entering college face significant challenges and disparities in course-readiness and access to resources.

Only 47 percent of Black students earn traditional “four-year” degrees within six years, while Whites graduate at a rate of 67 percent, according to the National Student Clearing Research Center. That’s in addition to other intangible social, mental and emotional issues that may arise while competing for grades within a population that does not always feel welcoming to them.

The Hamline student of color population has doubled over the past 20 years, now boasting 30 percent students of color, nine percent of whom are Black. While the look and landscape of the BSC have evolved over the years — changing its official name from P.R.I.D.E. (Promoting Racial Identity Dignity & Equality) to the Black Student Collective — the need for support is still there.

“We’re still in the middle of a civil rights situation,” said Carlos Sneed, associate dean of students at Hamline. “Although our numbers are large for a private school in Minnesota, our students are still interacting in an environment that wasn’t necessarily designed with them in mind,” he admitted. “We’ve gotten better, as have most colleges and universities, but White supremacy is still real. White Ethnocentric European thinking is still real. Students of color — and White students — still come from high schools that didn’t teach about the accomplishments or the experiences of people of color or women or LGBT people.”

Hamline’s students and alumni are quick to speak on the BSC’s impact. Bowie, a Hamline 2014 alum, said the BSC was her lifeline. Coming from a very diverse high school, she said, “Going to Hamline and being the only Black person in my classroom was a cultural shock.”

Having access to PRIDE, she said, “helped build community, promote African American scholars, and relating to other students… It had a real diverse hub — there were students from Duluth, Chicago, or from out of the country, like Liberia.”

She also noted the importance in creating safe spaces for Black people. “If you don’t have intentionality, then you’d find us marginalized in the corners of these primarily White universities,” said Bowie. “Just like the NAACP is a place that people to know to go if they have experienced any discrimination, Black student unions serve as a trusted organization for Black faces.”

Current BSC president Shania Smith agreed. “[BSC] is a home away from home…[where] we can just celebrate our Blackness and be around other Black students” said Smith, who is now a junior. She added being able to talk about issues in the Black communityis key. “I can talk to them about things that I struggle with that only Blacks or other POCs would understand.”

Sneed said that the BSC also supports retention rates in “subtle unquantifiable ways” by putting members in key leadership roles, having people who look like prospective students of color, as well as providing resources and cultural opportunities to celebrate their identity.

Freeman, a 2005 alum, will serve as keynote speaker for this Saturday’s planned PRIDE recognition. “She came in with a lot of academic and cultural capacity,” Sneed recalled of Freeman.

“I remember those conversations we had about her not only wanting to be a lawyer, but being a judge. She became involved, intricate and important to the campus community. What she gained in PRIDE and what she gave to PRIDE still continue to serve the organization well.”

Watching the BSC’s growth over the past 20 years, Sneed conjured images of the Ghana’s House of Slaves.

“There are doors that say ‘Door of No Return,’” he said. “I hope that this 50th anniversary will be a door of return for Black alumni. I want them to come back and tell their stories of being at Hamline and being in school, in high schools teaching, in the courtroom being lawyers. I want them to talk about working at 3M and Medtronic, and I want them to talk about being parents and partners. The time is right.”

Smith said that door is always open, whether alum or current students. “We just want people to feel supported.”

Hamline’s Black Student Collective 50th Anniversary Gala takes place Saturday, March 2 at Hamline University Anderson Student Center and Forum. For more information, visit hamline.edu.

This article originally appeared in the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder.

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COMMENTARY: The National Protest Must Be Accompanied with Our Votes

Just as Trump is gathering election data like having the FBI take all the election data in Georgia from the 2020 election, so must we organize in preparation for the coming primary season to have the right people on ballots in each Republican district, so that we can regain control of the House of Representatives and by doing so, restore the separation of powers and balance that our democracy is being deprived of.

Published

5 days ago

February 10, 2026

Oakland Post

Dr. John E. Warren, Publisher San Diego Voice & Viewpoint Newspaper. File photo..

By Dr. John E. Warren, Publisher San Diego Voice & Viewpoint Newspaper

As thousands of Americans march every week in cities across this great nation, it must be remembered that the protest without the vote is of no concern to Donald Trump and his administration.

In every city, there is a personal connection to the U.S. Congress. In too many cases, the member of Congress representing the people of that city and the congressional district in which it sits, is a Republican. It is the Republicans who are giving silent support to the destructive actions of those persons like the U.S. Attorney General, the Director of Homeland Security, and the National Intelligence Director, who are carrying out the revenge campaign of the President rather than upholding the oath of office each of them took “to Defend The Constitution of the United States.”

In California, the primary comes in June 2026. The congressional races must be a priority just as much as the local election of people has been so important in keeping ICE from acquiring facilities to build more prisons around the country.

“We the People” are winning this battle, even though it might not look like it. Each of us must get involved now, right where we are.

In this Black History month, it is important to remember that all we have accomplished in this nation has been “in spite of” and not “because of.” Frederick Douglas said, “Power concedes nothing without a struggle.”

Today, the struggle is to maintain our very institutions and history. Our strength in this struggle rests in our “collectiveness.” Our newspapers and journalists are at the greatest risk. We must not personally add to the attack by ignoring those who have been our very foundation, our Black press.

Are you spending your dollars this Black History Month with those who salute and honor contributions by supporting those who tell our stories? Remember that silence is the same as consent and support for the opposition. Where do you stand and where will your dollars go?

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Activism

Congresswoman Simon Votes Against Department of Homeland Security, ICE Funding

“They need accountability. Republicans already gave these agencies an unprecedented $170 billion for immigration enforcement, funding they have used to conduct raids at schools, separate families, and deploy a masked paramilitary who refuse to identify themselves on American streets. This bill gives them more funding without a single reform to stop unconstitutional, immoral abuses,” she said.

Published

5 days ago

February 10, 2026

Oakland Post

Congresswoman Lateefah Simon (D-CA-12). File photo.

By Post Staff

Congresswoman Lateefah Simon (D-CA-12) released a statement after voting against legislation to fund the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which supports Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CPB).

“Today, I voted NO on legislation to fund the Department of Homeland Security through Feb. 13, 2026.

“ICE and CBP do not need more funding to terrorize communities or kill more people,” she said in the media release.

“They need accountability. Republicans already gave these agencies an unprecedented $170 billion for immigration enforcement, funding they have used to conduct raids at schools, separate families, and deploy a masked paramilitary who refuse to identify themselves on American streets. This bill gives them more funding without a single reform to stop unconstitutional, immoral abuses,” she said.

“The American people are demanding change. Poll after poll of Americans’ opinions show overwhelming support for requiring ICE agents to wear body cameras and prohibiting them from hiding their faces during enforcement actions. This is the bare minimum transparency standard, and this funding legislation does not even meet this low bar,” Simon said.

“Republicans in Congress are not serious about reining in these lawless agencies. Their refusal to make meaningful changes to the DHS funding bill has consequences that go beyond immigration enforcement. TSA agents who keep our airports safe and FEMA workers who help our communities recover from disasters are stuck in limbo due to Republican inaction.

“The Constitution does not have an exception for immigrants. Every person on American soil has rights, and federal agencies must respect them. The East Bay has made clear at the Alameda County and city level that we will hold the line against a violent ICE force and support our immigrant communities – I will continue to hold the line and our values with my votes in Congress.”

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Activism

Post Newspaper Invites NNPA to Join Nationwide Probate Reform Initiative

The Post’s Probate Reform Group meets the first Thursday of every month via Zoom and invites the public to attend. The Post is making the initiative national and will submit information from its monthly meeting to the NNPA to educate, advocate, and inform its readers.

Published

5 days ago

February 10, 2026

Oakland Post

iStock.

By Tanya Dennis

The National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) represents the Black press with over 200 newspapers nationwide.

Last night the Post announced that it is actively recruiting the Black press to inform the public that there is a probate “five-alarm fire” occurring in Black communities and invited every Black newspaper starting from the Birmingham Times in Alabama to the Milwaukee Times Weekly in Wisconsin, to join the Post in our “Year of Action” for probate reform.

Reporter Tanya Dennis says, “The adage that ‘When America catches a cold, Black folks catch the flu” is too true in practice; that’s why we’re engaging the Black Press to not only warn, but educate the Black community regarding the criminal actions we see in probate court: Thousands are losing generational wealth to strangers. It’s a travesty that happens daily.”

Venus Gist, a co-host of the reform group, states, “ Unfortunately, people are their own worst enemy when it comes to speaking with loved ones regarding their demise. It’s an uncomfortable subject that most avoid, but they do so at their peril. The courts rely on dissention between family members, so I encourage not only a will and trust [be created] but also videotape the reading of your documents so you can show you’re of sound mind.”

In better times, drafting a will was enough; then a trust was an added requirement to ‘iron-clad’ documents and to assure easy transference of wealth.

No longer.

As the courts became underfunded in the last 20 years, predatory behavior emerged to the extent that criminality is now occurring at alarming rates with no oversight, with courts isolating the conserved, and, I’ve heard, many times killing conservatees for profit. Plundering the assets of estates until beneficiaries are penniless is also common.”

Post Newspaper Publisher Paul Cobb says, “The simple solution is to avoid probate at all costs. If beneficiaries can’t agree, hire a private mediator and attorney to work things out. The moment you walk into court, you are vulnerable to the whims of the court. Your will and trust mean nothing.”

Zakiya Jendayi, a co-host of the Probate Reform Group and a victim herself, says, “In my case, the will and trust were clear that I am the beneficiary of the estate, but the opposing attorney said I used undue influence to make myself beneficiary. He said that without proof, and the judge upheld the attorney’s baseless assertion. In court, the will and trust is easily discounted.”

The Black press reaches out to 47 million Black Americans with one voice. The power of the press has never been so important as it is now in this national movement to save Black generational wealth from predatory attorneys, guardians and judges.

The next probate reform meeting is on March 5, from 7 – 9 p.m. PST. Zoom Details:
Meeting ID: 825 0367 1750
Passcode: 475480

All are welcome.