The Black Student Union (BSU) played an instrumental role in Pratt’s early student strikes as their activism helped propel each movement forward. Black students were fighting for additional causes on top of those that the general student body was addressing, such as Black representation among students and staff, awareness of the Black community in classes and within the administration, accessibility for Black students, and the protection of Black students from harassment and assault. This was a major call for the Institute to stop being complicit in racial injustice.