PBG Strives to Empower Women on CMU’s Campus

Story by Barbara Garcia

Graphic courtesy of Destini Jones

Phenomenal Brown Girl (PBG) is a multicultural registered student organization (RSO) on Central Michigan University’s campus dedicated to women empowerment, service, mentoring and sisterhood. The organization will be held virtually beginning next semester.

PBG’s goals are to guide young black women through the world and college. They’re open to all races and ethnicities, but its main mission is to uplift black women.

The organization volunteers and advocates for the black community. CMU junior, Olivia Martin, is one of those advocates.

“I’m a mentor, but it’s like I’m still a mentee at heart,” Martin said. “I’m still learning.”

Every November there is a social media tag called “Natural November” where black women and men are encouraged to post pictures of their natural hair curls with the hashtag. This is meant for people to embrace their natural hair and feel confident. PBG hopes to promote inclusivity and empowerment, so people know they matter.

“PBG has most definitely done a lot with making me feel included when it comes to my skin color,” Martin said.

PBG is a safe place where people can reach out to a peer who might feel alone. CMU junior, Ravin Hall, is the fundraising chair for PBG, and one of her jobs is to come up with new ideas to raise money for her organization.

“It is extremely important, with everything that’s going on now, we want, people of color just to understand that we aren’t alone,” Hall said.

Hall said the women of PBG are there to empower each other and learn from each other to better understand who they are outside of an academic setting.

“We are just strong and independent individuals. We don’t want anybody to look at women as if we’re not,” Hall said. “We just want everybody to know that women are phenomenal. We are powerful. We are strong.”