For the first time in its history, John Brown University held no classes on Martin Luther King Jr. Day. In previous years, the campus has honored Dr. King’s legacy through chapel speakers, but this year stronger efforts were made to honor the pastor and activist’s work.
The Office of Christian Formation and other student organizations collaborated and showed the documentary “Freedom Riders” on campus in Bynum Theater on MLK Day. There was also a group discussion afterward led by Ted Song, Director of the Office of Diversity, along with Trisha Posey, director of the Honors Program, and Keith Jagger, to answer questions.
“Freedom Riders” is a documentary about the brave young men and women, black and white, who volunteered in 1961 to travel along public bus transportation from Washington, D.C. to New Orleans, Louisiana. Their journey led them through some of the most notoriously racist parts of the country. They were trying to prove that they weren’t going to be segregated. They would sit together in diners and at bus stations, Black and white.
At the time, it was basically impossible to travel safely through public transportation especially in the South despite laws that had been recently enacted. The South simply ignored those laws and became increasingly violent to the Freedom Riders, one of which was Charles Person, who was 18 years old at the time.
Person is one of two remaining Freedom Riders. Students will be reading his memoir “Buses Are a Comin’” for a campus-wide book club led by the Student Ministries Leadership Team, Student Government Association and the Multicultural Organization of Students Active In Christ. Person will be speaking in chapel on Feb. 22, and students in the book club will have the opportunity to have their book signed and to meet him personally.
Shanteé Atinencio, diversity senator in SGA and co-leader of the book club, is an international student. She said she knows of Dr. King but doesn’t fully understand the impact he made. Racial issues are different than where she’s from, the Caribbean coast of Nicaragua. Being at JBU, Atinencio noticed some particular trends among the diverse students on campus.
“I have this one friend, she told me that even though she meets like friends here at JBU and white friends, she feels like she can never really be herself around them because she has to be the different version of herself, not her Mexican self. She has to become a ‘white friend’ to them,” she said. “And it’s kind of frustrating, and that’s why what I want to do as the diversity senator is help us appreciate our differences and find ways in which we can integrate together. Truly when we find people on campus, those one or two people on campus that are willing to adopt us, we are willing to adopt them.”
Atinencio explained why celebrating and honoring MLK Day is so important, especially on the JBU campus. “Celebrating Martin Luther King Jr. Day and watching that movie is a way of opening people’s eyes and allowing them to be more welcoming to people who are coming here and understanding the background they are coming from.” Atinencio continued. “It’s only if we’re able to educate the whole community, the JBU community—like we need to change so we can welcome people here.”
Atinencio is co-leading the book club with Lena Lor from MOSAIC and Claire Mitchell from SMLT. It was perfect timing when it came down to picking the new book and having Charles Person on campus. “I think this is our first time, and I’ve been here for ten years, but a campus wide student book club is new,” Song said. “And what’s also interesting is it’s not just one group but we have SMLT representative, and SGA with Shanteé, and the MOSAIC president all co-leading, so I think that’s exciting to see the collaboration.”
Song said he’s been aiming to equip students to love one another better through these on-campus events focused on diversity, like the documentary, book club, and by inviting guest speakers such as the Rodney Sisco Symposium, which will be coming to campus on Feb. 23 and 25. The speakers are Rev. Esau McCaulley, Rev. Lena Crouso, and Rondell Trevino, the founder and director of Immigration Coalition. They will speak on issues of women in leadership, immigration and diversity.
Celebrating diversity doesn’t end on MLK day for JBU, but is a strong mission of people like Song and the student-led organizations on campus. While many efforts have been made to improve community and acceptance at JBU, Song acknowledges we’ll never be perfect. Nevertheless, we can still strive towards representing Christ. “So, I pray and hope that even though we are sinful people, that we can also as a community reflect God’s grace and love,” Song explained. “I think we can improve, and I believe we are improving. But what does it look like? We love more and understand others move. And that’s what we’re shooting for. Because if you don’t know the other person’s story, you can’t love the other person.”
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