Every person on UCLA’s campus that identifies as Afrikan American is already a significant part of the Afrikan Student Union (ASU). We are a group of students that work together to preserve the strength of the Afrikan American community at UCLA. ASU serves a collective purpose that caters to the needs and desires of its students, not only through activism on UCLA’s campus, but also off-campus as well. There has been a call for students to not only strive in defiance of the statistics that have been determining factors for their success, but also to branch out and provide similar opportunities for people of our circumstance that need guidance. Whether it be through proper information or encouragement, we need each other to withstand hard times.
The ASU community is similar to the trunk of a tree; This is the foundation for where we want to be fruitful. We, as students are the roots and the bark that make up the trunk. The stronger we are and more involved we are, the stronger the foundation for the tree. The top of the tree, is the Harambee Council. The Harambee Council is a representation for the 26 different organizations that make up ASU. These organizations are the branches that reach out into our students and into our personal communities. The name “Harambee” means “all pull together” in Swahili. Through 26 different organizations we have been pulling together and rallying as different tribes in a large family. The Harambee Council embodies the dedicated service that Afrikan American students have been committed to.
The purpose of these 26 organizations serve to specifically support the wellness, academic liberation, and promote the success of the Afrikan American culture and its people. Through the community work that these organizations put forth, inside and outside of UCLA, we as a people are gapping the bridge between access, assimilation, and activism.
The Harambee Council includes a wide variety of all-purpose serving organizations.
Support groups for men and women:
Afrikan Men’s Collective (AMC) and Afrikan Women’s Collective (AWC),
Pre-professional interest groups:
Black Business Student Association (BBSA)
Black Pre-Law Association (BPLA)
National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE)
Specific ethnic cultural groups:
Nigerian Student Association (NSA)
Habesha Student Association (HSA)
Art and music-based groups:
General health groups:
Black and Latino AIDS (BLAIDS)
Black Hypertension Project (BHP)
Black Pre-Health Organization (BPHO)
Spiritual health groups:
Academic outreach programs:
Academic Support Program (ASP)
The Afrikan Education Project (AEP)
Students Heightening Academic Performance Through Education (SHAPE).
Afrikan Greek life:
National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC)
Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated
Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Incorporated
Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Incorporated
Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority Incorporated
Homeless services:
IMHOME organization
Welcoming group for Afrikan Queers
BlaQue organization
Media representative:
NOMMO Magazine
We as individuals make up this influence of support and encouragement. Without the support and unity of our students, ASU, and the Harambee Council, our proverbial tree would wither away. Through the Harambee Council we have been a united front to allow our people to flourish and make a difference everywhere.
-Semaj Lang
Nommo Staff