Lloyd Daniel drew on the wisdom of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., in his speech at the TAASU Founders' Celebration.

Former and current TAASU members join to celebrate

By: David Cordill

Posted: 2/11/08

The African American Student Union (TAASU) Founders' Celebration lived up to its name Friday evening at Pierson Auditorium.

With a two-hour program entitled "Honoring the Legacy of Black Student Unions," past and present TAASU members, along with others guests, rejoiced and reflected during the celebration, which featured several guest speakers, live jazz, a dramatic performance and interpretative dance.

Keynote speakers Dr. Valerie Tucker Blackwell, TAASU founding member, and former Missouri House of Representatives member Lloyd Daniel, each ruminated on the historic struggles of African Americans on college campuses during the 1960s before commenting on the current status and future direction of African Americans within the educational realm.

Mel Tyler, UMKC Vice Chancellor Student Affairs and Enrollment Management, began the event with the university welcome to all attendees. Tyler, himself a Black Student Union member while in college, acknowledged the efforts of TAASU's founding members.

"I want to tell you that as student leaders of that time, you have paved the way for students of today," Tyler said. "I can tell you that I would not be standing here in the position that I have at the university without the leadership that was developed and provided in the '60s."

Blackwell, a current UMKC faculty member, explained why she and several fellow students transferred to UMKC.

"One night, black students were gathered up at Central Missouri State," Blackwell said. "We were in front of the dorms and were told, 'You cannot make it here and we don't have any record of you ever being here.' … And even though UMKC at that time was somewhat of a hostile environment, it still was better than many of the other schools in the Midwest. At least we were able to form a group like TAASU here."

Daniel, a former TAASU president who studied political science at UMKC from 1970-73, quoted and commented on the words of the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., while expounding on the socio-political role of the African American college student.

"You don't realize it but you're on the mountain top now," Daniel said, referring to Dr. King's famous 1968 Memphis, Tenn. speech. "…You should look at what you're gaining now as a way to have something to share with the folks if they ask. You don't have to beat them down with what you know, but when they ask you, that's the teachable moment for you to share what you know."

Daniel also asked students not to look down on those without college degrees.

"Some of the brightest, smartest and hard working - the most conscious people I know - have never set foot on a college campus," he said. "You have a lot to tell people after you get this degree, but you also have to listen."

In attendance were 10 of the original 60 founding members of TAASU. Among them was Ella Love, employee of the Kansas City Missouri School District, who reminisced about the campus mood at the time of TAASU's inception.

"We worked together with students of color and non-color," Love said. "I did not find that we had racism … all of the students [who] were in TAASU were first generation new students getting for the first time a diploma, a baccalaureate, for their families and for their ancestry. We were happy to be here."

Current TAASU members also had their chances to express the organization's importance to them. Vice president Tylena Martin spoke of the group's present agenda and was followed by president Janita Butler, who called for continued focus on TAASU's purpose.

"We want you to know that it is truly important to us to continue to foster a sense of community in African American students here at UMKC," Butler said, "and to stimulate the intellectual, political, cultural and social growth of all students here at UMKC."

A jazz quartet comprised of UMKC students performed during the dinner. Band members included Ryan Lee on drums, Hermon Mehari on trumpet, William Sanders on saxophone and Ben Leifer on bass.

UMKC student Travette Winters gave a solo dramatic performance of The Prayer and the Strayer, a self-penned dual character dialogue on the power of prayer and belief. Conservatory graduate student Crystal Robin performed an interpretive dance to Bobby McFerrin's "Sweet in the Morning."

For more information about TAASU, visit http://studo.umkc.edu/taasu/.

dcordill@unews.com