Equality Ride stops at Abilene

The Soulforce Equality Ride made its stop at Abilene Christian University on Monday, March 27, 2006. There has not been a lot of coverage on the stop by any major media, most likely due to the fact that the university’s administration allowed the Riders on to the campus.

(picture right: Equality Ride co-director Jake Reitan (on left in blue shirt) speaks to a group of ACU students)

According to an article in the ACU Optimist, the student newspaper, many students felt as though the panel (which was put together through a joint effort between university administration and Soulforce) did not offer enough time for students to have an open discussion with the the Equality Riders:

After the panel discussed prepared questions moderated by Cukrowski, only two questions were allowed from the audience before Dr. Dwayne VanRheenen, provost of the university, closed the forum with final thoughts and prayer.

Dittemore said he was disappointed the forum seemed more like a lecture than a discussion.

Jason Drysdale, sophomore Christian ministry major from St. Louis, agreed.

“What kind of open forum is it when no one can ask questions or talk with panelists where everyone can hear?” Drysdale asked.

Other students, including Chris Ford, sophomore youth and family ministry major from San Antonio, wanted to know more about why Soulforce came to campus.

“I’m glad they were able to come and that there was no hostility or ideas pushed on anyone because that is what Christianity is about,” Ford said. “I really wanted to hear why they are here to begin with. I wanted to hear more about their beliefs.”

Abilene officials said that the event went well. Dr. Wayne Bernard, dean of Campus Life commented on the panel’s inclusion of a discussion on how the media portrays LGBT people:

“I enjoyed how Soulforce members explained what they liked and didn’t like about how the media portrays homosexuality because it does or doesn’t reflect who they are,” he said. “I don’t think we realized that what the media portrays is not true about homosexuals; I think it was an eye-opener for students.”

Some students who attended the event, however, aren’t so happy. Freshman Adam Dittemore (who, in the excerpt above, said he felt the event was more like a lecture) also said, “The whole night was basically a movie review” and “They didn’t talk about the issues that people wanted to hear”.

One student wrote an opinion piece, published today, with the headline of “Visit rouses questions, not answers.” In the opinion piece, student Sarah Carlson, states:

Each hour brought with it more unanswered questions, and when people occasionally asked how my day was going, I probably unnerved them when I relayed my ensuing existential breakdown before moving to the next event.

My confusion probably mirrors many students’ with Soulforce’s visit producing more questions than answers. Aside from our now-permanent red handprints from self-congratulatory pats on the back on how we handled the situation, th repercussions of this visit are far from over and the journey ahead for the university in regards to its discussions on sexuality remains unclear.

It’s easy for a group of straight Christians to come to a conclusion on homosexuality, but when you’re looking a gay man, lesbian, bisexual or transgendered person in the eye, you’re forced to reconsider the lessons you’ve been taught.

The most telling conversations during the visit occurred in closed sessions, mainly during small groups’ discussions during meals or in invitation-only forums where students were allowed to ask Soulforce members anything they wanted. Yet even these conversations were stilted to a degree, and upon reflection of the day’s events, neither ACU nor Soulforce truly engaged in an open dialogue with the other.

One good thing about the visit at ACU is that both the University and the Riders were able to show people that dialogue is indeed possible (although it is pretty clear that it could have been improved upon at ACU). There was no need for the Riders to be kept of campus and no one was hurt. People listened (maybe) to each other even though they might have disagreed. It is called love… and maybe, just maybe, it was shown from both sides on Monday at ACU.

The Equality Riders were scheduled to stop at Texas A&M University today to speak out against that school’s military program. According to the Equality Ride, Texas A&M has the largest number of uniformed students outside of the US service academies.

Click here for the most up-to-date Equality Ride news on MattHillNC.com.

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