A new social club on campus is creating a “safe haven” for Black women. Sisterhood UCCS will balance tough conversations about Black experiences with social functions. As a community, they will work to collaborate with other campus clubs.
UCCS freshmen Samrawit Kopessa and Amber Davis created the club after recognizing the need for a space that focuses on Black women’s experiences. “Since it’s a predominantly white school, we thought it was important to advocate for Black women,” said Kopessa, undeclared on the pre-med track.
Last year, Kopessa started a club for Black women at her high school in Aurora. Davis, a WEST major and pre-law minor, was also a part of a Sisterhood club at her high school.
“The main reason we wanted to make it [Sisterhood] for Black women is because in certain spaces, Black women are expected to choose between which experiences they want to share: being Black or being a woman,” Daivs said. “At Sisterhood, you can share experiences of being both.”
Despite placing a focus on women of color, all students are welcome to become a member of Sisterhood. “The main thing is, as long as you’re open — even if you come and listen — that’s all that matters,” Davis said. “Opening to learn other people’s experiences, you can grow as a person so that you’re not only living in your experience, but you can learn how other people want to be treated or learn what other people are going through so you can contribute to making the world better.”
The biweekly club meetings will focus on conversations. The co-founders also plan to host other events like movie viewings and social outings for the members with the goal of building a community where Black women can share their experiences and feelings. “That’s our main focus: To make a difference in the community,” Kopessa said.
Both Davis and Kopessa are members of Black Student Union and African Student Association. “I feel like the dynamic is different in a way with ASA and BSU because we’re doing different things like talking about different topics and collaborating with other clubs,” Kopessa said.
“We’re going to have social outings and work with other clubs, not just clubs with members of color but everyone,” Davis said. Sisterhood is currently working to collaborate with the UCCS Feminist Club.
Sisterhood meets biweekly in MOSAIC on Wednesdays at 6:30 p.m. For more information, find Sisterhood UCCS on Instagram @sisterhood_uccs.