The UABSA and Our Legacy of Excellence

“We are committed to serving all Black students at the University of Alberta.”

These are the words you see when doing a cursory search of the U of A’s Black Student Association. What you’ll find, however, runs a little deeper. We are a triumphant exhale of cosmic beauty. We are a tapestry of one interconnected butterfly effect after another. Dominos of compounding impact. They echo an undeniable truth: Black excellence begets Black, boundless excellence. But of course, we been knew.

Anxious and antsy, like a tender-headed toddler who couldn't keep still long enough for her braider to complete the part –  that was me the first time I walked into a BSA event. The feeling quickly faded, however, and in its place, I found warmth, because I could finally let my guard down. I saw people just like me sharing relatable stories, laughing at jokes you couldn’t make with your White friends, eating cookout-worthy food. There is such comfort in shared experiences and diverse backgrounds coming together through BSA events and spaces. It beckons one to sit and unfold for a while. But don't take my word for it; look around. Feel the atmosphere siphon what words often fail to, and without uttering a thing, understand a thousand truths at once. 

While speaking to the many wonderful members that make up the UABSA, I noticed that many of us are immigrants who encountered the harsh culture shock of having to identify as black for the first time in our lives. You realize just what exactly is meant by the term “visible minority.” Your appearance suddenly invites experiences that are localized to you solely because of your melanin and culture. We are given less grace when breaking unspoken rules, and more grievances for them. It's left to us to confront preconceptions of Blackness and understand colonial attitudes to deal with it. And to complain about microaggressions? Well, that would be breaking yet another unspoken rule, the one that implies racism does not exist in Canada.  

The consequences of these realities are often invisible or seem like a “normal” part of the immigration process. Like taking on a Canadian accent. While a funny talking point for some, it is a necessity to be understood, to preemptively avoid persistent microaggressions for others. A lot of us haul the weight of self-assumed assimilation on our backs. And even those who were born here have shared their stories of indignation when navigating primarily White spaces. 

Sun, spice, and solidarity at UABSA’s 2024 cookout. (Photo: Salem)

There is no singular story that properly represents the experiences of the Black Canadian community, and we are not defined by the challenges we’ve faced. Still, they speak to the importance of creating spaces and opportunities dedicated to dismantling those barriers. The UABSA serves as a powerful testament to that commitment.

Our latest gala commemorates a very special milestone. 2025 officially marks six years since the inception of the UABSA. It’s been six amazing years of advocating for the Black community, not just on campus, but to anyone we could reach. We want to acknowledge the efforts of those before us, who took on a lot of the heavy lifting. “Across the Diaspora'' is the theme for this year’s gala, paying homage to the visionary creators who founded UABSA. Moreover, it spotlights the ongoing contributions of today's Black students, who, through their endeavors, continue to shape and define the history of the Black community at the University of Alberta.

Where did it all start? In 2019, with seven co-founders turning their shared passion into a mission: to create a hub that acts as an overarching community for all Black students on campus and serves as additional support for other cultural groups already active at the university. The formation of the UABSA was on the heels of several similar groups that had already formed roots on campuses across Canada, from the University of British Columbia’s Black Students’ Union to groups at the University of Toronto and Dalhousie University.

At the time, the population of Black students on campus had increased dramatically in the last two decades, both at the undergraduate and graduate levels. Yet, this rise in numbers was not reflected when looking at faculty. Simultaneously, there was growing disproportionate profiling and carding of Black and Indigenous people by Edmonton police. Paired with the anti-immigration sentiment in the culture at large, many Black students were caught in this in-between, like a half-flipped coin spinning while the world watches. It’s why the co-founders fought to highlight the vibrant richness of Black culture – all the different faces of it. Creating that sense of belonging was not only revolutionary, it was necessary. 

Since then, we’ve hosted and supported events ranging from hair empowerment workshops and insightful panel discussions to community outreach initiatives and damn good cookouts. Elders and speakers mentor us the same way our parents and grandparents would. Beyond guiding us through the roadmap to vocational excellence; they show us how to stretch when we reach,  how far to fill our lungs, and from which pools of air and light. We’ve connected graduates and alumni with undergraduates and high school students all over Edmonton based on their specific needs and interests. These are not temporary interactions either. They are long lasting connections and powerful networks in the making.

We’ve come a long way.

So, it's important that we not only commemorate and celebrate our journey, but that we also remember. Else we bear the consequences of stagnation, wherein history twists into itself, progress falters and work comes to a halt. We must persist in rolling the legacy forward, leaving it greater than we found it. As I hear and collect these stories, I promise to grip them tightly, to hold on to them like a child to the sleeve of her father, like a yellowing leaf to its deciduous tree. As they are passed down to our successors, carrying this torch will be a source of pride. 

“The University of Alberta Black Students’ Association strives to empower and promote community interaction among all Black students at the University of Alberta. With the goal of fostering student development, the UABSA’s objective is to create a network of supportive members who connect culturally and socially while contributing to one another’s success academically.

Our aim is not only to provide a safe environment for Black students, but one that invites all University of Alberta students to discuss issues affecting the Black community, as well as aiming to encourage them to become more aware and involved with the movement of overcoming social, economic and racial inequalities in our world. We are committed to serving all Black students at the University of Alberta.”

If that's not love, it’s the closest thing to it. Because to be a part of the UABSA is to be, to some extent, and yet with such unimaginable certainty, woven into the fabric we are made of: a little resilience, a little hope, and a shared legacy of undeniable excellence.