Cayla Withers is a Southern Black American woman of faith and an aerospace engineering student at Stanford University, who is following a beautiful legacy of Black American women engineers from the South, deemed Hidden Figures. Withers’ dream is to travel to space one day and create her own legacy. While she is living out this amazing dream, there is so much turbulence she has to endure. But no matter how much turbulence there is … she just will not give up! Follow Withers as she takes off into a unique destiny full of crazy experiences and recounts her time majoring in engineering, reminisces about parts of her journey and drops Hidden Gems along the way. This week she shares a Hidden Gem.

The universe contains about 200 billion trillion stars, some held in different galaxies across space, each star emitting its own individual light and shining uniquely in its path. Inside of the Black Stanford galaxy, the stars came out shining brighter than ever before on Feb. 15th. Cameras flashed, the red carpet was rolled out and students emerged in their finest Hollywood attire, looking like the real Black celebrities. Those stars strutted down the red carpet oozing confidence at an event resembling an industry awards show party. This event was … Black Love. 

Black Love is an annual concert that Stanford’s Black Student Union hosts around Valentine’s Day, and it stands as a way to unite the community and honor the beauty of love amongst Black individuals. In high school, I had seen a popular YouTuber’s post about Black love, and so the moment I committed to Stanford, I eagerly awaited the day I’d attend myself. I was drawn into the sheer fantasy of the event, from the fancy outfits to the venue itself, dreaming of dancing on the floors of Toyon Hall one day in a dazzling dress as a student. I was excited about Black Love because I’d never attended events like it growing up. I hadn’t even gotten a prom in high school because of the pandemic.

This year’s Black Love was extra special for me because it was my graduation year, so I wouldn’t just be walking the carpet in a dress in February, but in a cap and gown in June. For the last couple of years that I attended Black Love, I wore old clothing either because of a wardrobe malfunction or failure to plan ahead, so I just knew I had to pop out this time.

I raced to the online stores (almost) faster than the speed of light to find my perfect dress. The first outfit I bought was a red silk dress, but it was too short and didn’t really feel magical. Unsure if I could actually find a dress that felt right and could be delivered in time, I returned to the online shops and gasped in surprise and excitement. My eyes lit up. “OMG, this is it!” Like a high school girl who’d found her perfect prom dress or a bride with her dream wedding dress, I immediately fell in love with the gorgeous, strapless baby pink dress with a slit – an outfit I wasn’t used to wearing. However, it spoke to me in ways that echoed Josephine Baker and Dorothy Dandridge. I even ordered a faux fur shawl to truly emulate Hollywood glamor. 

The big day had finally arrived. I usually had help from friends with my hair and makeup, but I was confident that I could do my beauty routine myself this time. In past years, I didn’t think I could execute the look I wanted, but this time I had a vision for my Black Love look and strongly felt that I could perfectly execute it. And I knew it was time that I finally fully styled myself to prove that I had the talent inside of me.

 For my makeup, I went with a soft look that enhanced my natural features. For my hair, I chose a cute natural afro with a white rose (my signature accessory) that for me symbolizes purity, power and resistance even in the midst of pain. The rose always reminded me of when popular Black Hollywood artist Aretha Franklin referenced Shakespeare in her song “A Rose Is Still a Rose,” singing “… a rose is still a rose, baby girl, you’re still a flower.” The natural afro further embodied my rose’s resistance. The look was powerful. And there was no better way to emulate Black Hollywood than to embrace my Black features, defying Western media beauty standards that tell us Black women we are not beautiful enough. 

I walked into the event fashionably late (of course). As I opened the doors to Toyon Hall, I thought to myself, “This is breathtaking.” From the table set up to the decorations and the stage, everything was beautiful. The event organizers had done a wonderful job of making the event feel like we were at a real Hollywood party. Everyone looked like actual stars, with attire ranging from nice dresses to tuxedos. I encountered familiar faces from years past, and we shared joyful conversations and laughs while waiting for the performers to take the stage. We were all ecstatic about what the night held in store for us. 

Once the music started, the atmosphere of the Toyon Lounge immediately shifted. Red, blue and purple LED lights filled the room while sound waves from the speakers boomed. Students gathered in the middle of the room to vibe to the band. This was something I hadn’t quite witnessed before. 

I jumped up and down in the crowd, danced to the electric music like I was at a rock concert, and took lots of pictures. Near the end of his performance, the guitarist jumped off of the stage and into the crowd. The students gathered around him while he kept rocking out. The crowd went crazy. It was a thrilling time. Soon after the performance, light quickly returned to the lounge, signaling the end of the event. And everyone later went to the afterparty.

At the afterparty, I continued dancing the night away, making memories that I’d be sure to cherish as an alumna. Thankfully, there are records of my time there from the pictures making me look like a real shooting star.

Not only was the night fun and well planned, it was the perfect break for an engineering student who has been buried in her books lately, and I also just loved the moments I created throughout the night.

During my time at Stanford, I have always cherished Black Love. So much more than a concert or a social event, it is a night to celebrate joy, friendship, relationships and self-love. The event is a reminder that Black love, whether platonic or romantic, is beautiful, powerful, spiritual and worthy of celebration in all capacities. We may recognize it outside of ourselves, but it all begins within us. Black love always holds true and will forever withstand the test of time. The event reminds us that our love for one another is enough to birth hope, create legacies and inspire dreams. 

I hope and pray that future Chocolate Cardinals continue this tradition of Black love, not just for one night but throughout their time at Stanford by spreading love in a world filled with hate and envy. I also hope that one day, people within the Black community realize its everlasting power to change things through love. With our passions and relationships, we can reverse unethical policies, inspire people and change the universe at large. I also hope that Chocolate Cardinals remember to pour love into themselves as well. After all, we all are our own stars that all shine brighter than we’ll ever know, and we all could use just a little bit more love.

And for the Black engineering students at Stanford, I hope we can think of ourselves as stars in the fields we occupy. Like Black Hollywood stars are fighting for space in Hollywood, many of us are doing the same in engineering. And just as those stars shine in the dark industries filled with racism and hate, we shine in the engineering buildings and offices we step into. 

Stay in love,

XOXO, The Blue Giant.