Photograph by Calliope Arkilic
The Women’s Student Union (WSU) was founded in December 2016 in response to unfair bathroom pass policies which target many women students. The club is relatively new, but has already accomplished many things. The purpose of the WSU is to discuss and tackle many of the issues that women face in society today and have been facing for years. Another purpose of the club is to help different women’s organizations in and outside of the Bay Area. “Our club is providing a safe space for women,” said Anjuli Arreola-Burl, one of the WSU co-presidents. One of the club’s goals is for women to come together, share their thoughts about these issues around the world, and support women's movements in and out of BHS.
Joining this club is important because this is one of the only clubs at BHS focused on empowering women. “I think this club is important because there is large population of women in this world but they are oppressed,” said Simone Ewell-Szabo, a junior at Berkeley High School (BHS). The fight for women’s rights has been going on for along time and will continue. WSU wants women in the BHS community to have a space where they are safe to speak their minds, make people think about how they treat women, and teach everybody to be aware about treating everyone equally. They bring attention to issues women face today. “In our club we talk about issues we notice in society, and try solving them if we can,” said Maya Monroe, a member of WSU and senior at BHS
Some actions and events the club has done in the past was a petition to change the bathroom pass policy and raised money for Planned Parenthood. The event they are currently planning to host is to celebrate International Women’s Day on March 8 at lunch in the courtyard by having a women’s themed cookie decorating table. WSU welcomes everyone to join the fight for women's equality and meet in Amanda Moreno’s room C-126 every Tuesday during lunch.