BCC became a center of Black and Latino cultural arts during the 1970s and 1980s.

It reflected an emerging national trend among a new generation of young, confident students of color who were proud to show off their cultural heritage and achievements.

At BCC, Brown honored writers, activists, and artists through the college’s Humanitarian Award. Its many recipients included dancer Pearl Primus, writer James Baldwin, artist Romare Bearden, and actor Paul Robeson, Sr.

In 1983, Brown invited Angela Davis, activist and feminist, to speak at Gould Memorial Library. The event was sponsored by BCC’s Student Council. Throughout the 1960s, Davis had spoken out against police brutality, racial injustice, and gender inequality and had a long association with the Black Panthers. Her talk at BCC was “Race, Women, and Class: Unveiling the Mask of Oppression.”