Last summer, McMaster University undertook the difficult task of looking in the mirror and conducting a review of the Black student-athlete experience within the athletic department. It was a heavy moment of transparency, and what resulted was a list of concrete action plans to combat the systemic racism that has existed.
 
For Brandon Bernard and Tristan Lindo, it was a long time coming and the pair believe it was essential in order to move forward.
 
"The review did a good job of opening the eyes of people who might've been naysayers of what was going at McMaster," Bernard explained. "At the face, the school prides itself as a very diverse school, but on the backend, there are a lot of skeletons in the closet."
 
Bernard and Lindo, both communication studies majors, have a deep understanding of the immediate action needed in order to quell any doubts and to equally be heard.
 
"It's crazy that it had to be put in writing," Lindo said in reference to the review. "I can't say I was surprised by the results of the review, but it was a good step forward for people who doubt our experiences."
 
Both student-athletes are prominent members of the Marauders men's basketball team – a roster that currently features the highest percentage of Black student-athletes amongst Marauder teams.
 
"[The basketball team] represents the majority of the Black athletic community, and we're the only roster that has a majority of Black people on the team," Lindo illustrated. "Even in our panel discussions, we struggle to find Black female representation within our department."
 
And for a lack of diverse representation across the school's varsity teams, the men's basketball team has felt as though they stand out in that regard.
 
"If you want to think of minorities at McMaster, you immediately turn your eye to the basketball team," said Bernard. "We're isolated – we're the only big body of Black individuals making up the demographic. We definitely make up more than 80% of the Black community at DBAC [David Braley Athletic Centre]."
 
That same roster also plays for the only Black full-time head coach in the department, Patrick Tatham, and for the duo, it's been reassuring to know there's an individual, and a group of coaches, on their team that they can relate to.
 
"With everything that went on in the summer, PT came to us and said, 'I'm going to try to make a change going forward, and you guys that I brought in, I want you guys to be trailblazers at McMaster,'" Bernard recounted. "With all the opportunities that have come up, all throughout the pandemic, with these panels and the chance to moderate, it's not an opportunity to pass up."
 
Since the summer, Bernard and Lindo have continued to use their voice. From The Players Podcast, an outlet to share their experiences – to teaming up with The Reach Series, and fellow men's basketball player, Kwasi Adu-Poku, on a pair of panels geared towards OUA basketball players.
 
Most recently, the two were part of a group that planned and executed a webinar between Black student group leaders and Black student-athletes in the sharing of their experiences at McMaster.
 
"As far as panels, Brandon and I are both Black, so we want to try and make a difference within the Black community at McMaster," Lindo explained. "Doing these webinars have allowed us to build closer bonds with student groups on campus like BlackSpace and MacAfricans."
 
"Looking back, we started something to create discussion, and it's a blessing to say I'm part of something so revolutionary," Bernard added. "I mean Rome wasn't built in a day, so in the continuation of my time here, I'm going to try to continue to use my voice."
 
To call these two 'trailblazers' would be an understatement – they really are helping to bridge the gap between McMaster and its Black community. Both Bernard and Lindo have been at the forefront of pivotal conversations across campus, charting a new and unfamiliar path forward for the department. It's in that unfamiliarity that the two continue to push change, push advocacy, and push transparency for their peers and for those that come after them – an unintended consequence, that is, cementing their legacy.
 
Taking a moment to reflect on the work they continue to do, they both agree that they want their time at McMaster to be remembered more for representing change than their achievements on the court.
 
"Right now, I want people to look at me as someone wo gave back to the community willingly," said Lindo. "I want people to look back at me as someone who always tried to give back."
 
"Much like Tristan, I want to represent change," added Bernard. "I want to be known as more than just a basketball player. I came here for basketball, but in my time being here, I made countless changes off the court, and created a lot of revolutionary things at McMaster."