With a brief walk from Carver Hall to the Free Speech Zone in front of Parks Library, observation of Black History Month at Iowa State began.

More than two dozen students participated in the Unity March at noon Friday. Participants wielded signs bearing messages such as “Black history is American history,” “Let freedom ring” and “Let us celebrate together.” Leaders of the Black Student Alliance also handed out orange armbands that were also worn during the reconstruction of the Black Cultural Center last spring.

On the steps of Parks Library, people were given the opportunity to share experiences of being a black student at Iowa State and to read quotes from famous black Americans such as George Washington Carver, Booker T. Washington, Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X.

“I just like events like this, because in my major I’m really a minority and I don’t really see that many people of my color throughout the day,” said Whitney Searcy, junior in early childhood education. “But at events like this, where we come together and shed tears and laugh and just kind of reminisce, it just means a lot to me.”

Fabian Awanyai, senior in interdisciplinary studies, said he felt Black History Month was like “a gift and a curse.”

“It’s a gift, because we actually have the month and we have something to signify the struggle,” Awanyai said. “But at the same time, you know, we oftentimes get so wrapped up in our lives that we forget to live it 24-7. And so, suddenly, we think we can redeem ourselves when February comes. I guess I want to just say live it, 24-7. Don’t just do it once a [year].”

Joshua Mensah, senior in computer engineering, said he is proud to be an African-American male at Iowa State because he is “able to change people’s perceptions of what it means to be black on campus.”

“I try to make it my goal as I’m on campus or working through school to do well as a person, you know?” Mensah said. “Not to have people look at me and say, ‘Wow, you’re doing well for a black person,’ you know, but just, ‘Wow, you’re doing well.’

“So I try to make an influence positively on the Iowa State campus before I leave here. And what Black History Month means to me is it’s a time to reflect . We should be doing this all year round, but it’s important to just take a special time, you know, like a birthday or something where you have special emphasis on someone.”

Most students who spoke said they were first-generation students, but Babatunde Agbaje, senior in family finance, housing and policy, is a third-generation ISU student who wasborn in Nigeria.

“I have been a minority my whole life . When I got here, I realized things were actually different; there’s discrimination and racism, and I did not know that until I got here. Then I got here and I was one of like five black kids in my graduating class of like 400,” Agbaje said. “. No matter how different we are, we have to work together. So black people, white people, Asian people, Hispanic people – no matter who you are, we have to work together because it is for the common good. No matter how much of a minority I feel like or still feel like, we all have to be assembled.”

Before reviewing other events planned for the month, BSA President Rachel Iheanacho, senior in chemical engineering, shared her experience as a leader on campus.

“I’m from Baton Rouge, Louisiana,” Iheanacho said. “. my environment was a majority African-American, and in my time here at Iowa State, I’ve had the opportunity to educate people who otherwise may not have had my perspective at Iowa State in their lifetime.

“So I really do treasure the fact that I’m African-American. I love my upbringing, I love my culture, I love my history. I think it’s important for us to celebrate Black History Month; I think it’s a great time for us to get together and to reflect, but also to understand that, as African-Americans, as Africans, we have made wonderful impacts in American history. It’s not just something separate. It’s something that has made this country what it was.”

In an impromptu speech, Frank Bell, program coordinator of the Ames Lab Institute for Physical Research and Technology, offered some advice to the black students present.

“As you’re celebrating Black History Month, I hope that you will also become preoccupied with the history of black students at Iowa State University,” Bell said. “You are weaving fabric into the tapestry of our history here. What kind of threads are you weaving in? We pray that they will be strong, lasting threads, because what you do today is going to determine the success or failure of students who come behind you.”

Bell noted the presence of nonblack students standing with the group who were interested in what was going on. He said black students should expect to be ambassadors, especially this month.

“So don’t be surprised this month if you become the spokesperson for all things black in your classes. You’ve been doing that anyway,” he said. “Don’t be surprised this month if you become the spokesperson for all things black in your residence halls or your clubs and organizations. You’ve been doing that anyway.

“And if that person who’s sitting next to you on CyRide when everybody’s bunched up and you can tell if your deodorant is working or not, and they begin to ask you questions, OK, just suffer a little along with them, because the connections you make while you’re in college truly are the ones you will have for the rest of your lives.”

To conclude the march, everybody formed a circle and joined hands to sing “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” an anthem during the American Civil Rights Movement.

As the group was about to disperse, Agbaje had one last message for the group.

“Obviously, this is a big turnout, but it’s not as big as it could have been,” he said. “I just want to say that whatever we don’t do now, our children will have to do that.

“So if we have to put up with the cold weather and walking with a small group, hopefully when our kids go to college, it will be like a train going back through there.”