Black Student Union

Black Student Union
AbbreviationBSU
PredecessorNegro Student Association
FormationMarch 1966 (1966-03)
FoundersJerry Varnado
James Garrett
TypeStudent activist organization
PurposeAdvocacy for Black students
Black Power activism
Demand for Black Studies and increased minority representation
AffiliationsTWLF (1968–1969)

In higher education in the United States, a Black Student Union (BSU) is an organization of Black students, generally with a focus on protest. Historically functioning as a Black counterpart to the largely white organization Students for a Democratic Society, Black Student Unions advocated for changes on college campuses during the Black Power movement. According to Ibram X. Kendi, the existence of the academic field of Black studies is a direct result of advocacy by Black Student Unions.