‘In the face of adversity, we gather together’: Yale hosts 28th Black Solidarity Conference
500 Black undergraduates from across the country came to Yale over the weekend for the BSC.

Courtesy of Madelynn Huff
This past weekend, over 500 Black undergraduate students from across the country gathered at Yale for the 28th annual Black Solidarity Conference, or BSC.
The conference occurred against the backdrop of the early days of the second Trump era. BSC organizers emphasized the importance of the conference’s theme — “The Renaissance is B(l)ack: Crafting Joy, Confronting Injustice” — amid Donald Trump’s presidency and growing backlash to progressive causes across the country.
“We planned this conference knowing that we would be welcomed with you during a historically pivotal moment. We would either be celebrating the inauguration of America’s first female President, or we would be coping with the resurgence of xenophobic and racist ideals associated with the MAGA movement,” said BSC Vice President Madelynn Huff ’27. “In the face of adversity, we gather together to smile and to celebrate the tremendous achievements of Black people, past, present and future.”
The conference, which took place from Jan. 30 to Feb. 1, included several panels, speeches, a concert by American rapper Rich the Kid and a formal keynote gala. These events took place throughout Yale’s campus. Yale students serving on the BSC board along with Timeica Bethel ’11, dean of the Afro-American Cultural Center, planned and organized the conference.
For the keynote address on Saturday afternoon, crowds of students filled up Yale’s largest auditorium, Woolsey Hall.
“It is so important when in times like these, that we as Black people are able to take up space in the largest spaces of places that were built by our people, but not necessarily for our people,” said Bethel in her opening speech.
Kevin Richardson, a member of the exonerated five, was the keynote speaker. In 1989, at 14 years old, Richardson, and four other Black and Latino teenagers from Harlem, were convicted for the assault of a white female jogger in Central Park. “The Central Park Five,” as they became known, were coerced by police investigators into making false statements about their involvement in the attack.
In 2002, after DNA evidence and a confession from the actual rapist came to light, the New York Supreme Court exonerated the five. Their story has become a well-known example of racial profiling and abuse of rights in the legal system. The five sued the City of New York for malicious prosecution, racial discrimination, and emotional distress and the city settled the suit for $41 million in 2014.
“Back in 1989, I didn’t know it but I had a lot of courage to go through my case because we thought, my family thought, that the whole world hated us. But we always knew that there were people that was in our corner,” said Richardson. “We have to have that courage.”
The 1989 trial received mass media attention and Richardson and the four other boys were besieged in major outlets in New York City and throughout the country. During the trial, President Donald Trump took out a full-page newspaper ad, calling to reinstate the death penalty in New York, citing the case in which Richardson was wrongly convicted.
Richardson spoke about the threats his family received throughout the trial and its aftermath.
“They would call saying, ‘Miss Richardson, your son deserves to be castrated.’ And hang up. There were so many threats,” Richardson said. “My story is a story that should be passed down through curriculums in schools, to show that first of all, you need to remember to know your rights. When you get apprehended, arrested, you need to remember the right to remain silent.”
In addition to speaking about the wrongful conviction, Richardson discussed other aspects of his life and personality: his passion for music — he was part of a Jazz band in high school and still practices the trumpet to this day– and his journey to gaining an education after prison — Richardson was the first person to receive an undergraduate honorary degree from Syracuse University. He also spoke about his relationship with his mother and two daughters.
He emphasized the importance of fighting injustice for generations to come. He pointed to the students in the audience as the future of progress and advised them to “get a seat at the table,” and use their voices to create change.
“We are living in a moment where Black communities face rising attacks on our voting rights, our education and our very history books are being banned. Black Studies programs are under threat. Police violence continues. Our democratic system itself is being challenged,” said BSC President Hanifah Ouro-Sama ’26. “When I look around this room, I see exactly what we need to face these challenges, hundreds of brilliant black students ready to lead the way forward. You are the creators of justice and joy. You are the freedom fighters that our community needs.”
The conference ended on Sunday.