Mizzou’s Black Student Athlete Association hosted a voter registration drive from Sept. 15 through Sept. 25 in the Mizzou Athletics Training Complex to help student athletes register to vote.
Keiarra Slack is the vice president of Mizzou BSAA and plays for the Missouri Women’s Soccer team. She said it is important to use their platform as student athletes to help educate others on topics like voting.
“We don’t get enough education about whether you’re registered, where to register at, where to vote at,” Slack said. “I think it’s important that, especially as athletes, we can use this platform to educate others, while also just as people, to make sure we’re educated on our status as well.”
Atina Kamasi, the secretary and treasurer of Mizzou BSAA, is an international student at MU. She said it is important that her peers understand they have a voice in this country.
“With this presidential election coming up, I think it’s more important than ever for the majority of the United States, especially the majority of young people, to vote,” she said.
Kamasi also said it is important to have an accessible place for athletes to learn about voting and be able to check their registration status.
“We run around all day, every day and sometimes it’s hard getting out of our way and going somewhere else to educate ourselves,” she said. “It’s not just this presidential election. People will vote for the rest of their lives, so if we don’t learn now, when will we?”
Mizzou BSAA was formed in August of this school year and has provided a place for Black athletes to share ideas and educate each other.
“We just need a safe space for athletes, particularly Black athletes,” Slack said. “Considering the climate in society right now, we need a space where we can just talk and also take that time to educate and teach.”
While Mizzou BSAA is new for MU, Black student athlete associations have existed at other schools before this year. Kamasi, who previously attended Washington State University, said the organizations for Black athletes she saw there inspired her to cofound one at MU.
“The culture we have in Mizzou and the history of Mizzou, I believe that we needed a safe space … for our Black student athletes to feel heard and seen,” Kamasi said.
Slack said at times she feels separated from other students, specifically Black students, because of her status as an athlete. She would like to see this gap close up so they might be better able to learn from one another.
“There’s so much about Mizzou that I don’t know that other students may,” Slack said. “I’m big on networking and how we can just, like, get to know one another.”
More information about Mizzou BSAA can be found on Instagram or Twitter @MizzouBSAA.
_Edited by Joy Mazur | [email protected]_
