As part of Cosumnes River College’s Black History Month celebration, A2MEND hosted a Melanated Conversations event on Thursday in the Winn Center.

Along with A2MEND, the event was organized by the Black History Month Student Committee and facilitated by Dr. Dante Miller, executive director of student success and retention at University of Pacific.

Student Support Specialist Brianna James said this event was designed as a space for the Black community to connect.

“It’s a community dialogue that really focuses on creating intentional space for honest dialogue and community connection while strengthening partnerships that uplift the Black community,” James said.

The event brought together A2MEND, a group for Black men, and Melanated Conversations, a group for Black women.

They discussed several questions related to Black identity, community and belonging, including the essence of the Black community at CRC and how to best support each other within that space.

Nalani Kennedy, a 19-year-old undecided major, said bringing Melanated Conversations and A2MEND created deeper dialogue.

“Putting them together gives us an opportunity to really have more interpersonal conversations between different genders,” Kennedy said.

Khalil Nettles, a 28-year-old art major, said the event allowed people to come together and share ideas.

“It was a space where we are able to speak on how to value each other’s community,” Nettles said.

Nasiriyah Thompson, a 19-year-old business marketing major, said she is a member of the Black History Month Committee and that she gained a sense of community from the event.

“I don’t feel like we get to have lingual spaces like this, so we kind of got to bring two groups together and collaborate with them;,” Thompson said. “We’re really happy to see the outcome.”