Update from the Equality Ride #2

Soulforce Equality Rider Mandy Matthias checks in with us from the road:

There are quite a few moments that will remain in my memory from my experiences on the second week of Equality Ride. Individual conversations and the picture of my friends being arrested stand out to me as I reflect.

The week began in Springfield, Missouri with our stop at Central Bible College. We stood vigil, noticing security and police officers dotted throughout the campus watching us. My friends Abby and Brandy, both straight allies, walked onto campus and were promptly arrested with Bibles in their hands. While we stood and watched as they were taken away, some students
from Evangel, a nearby sister school, approached us and talked with a few of the Riders. They informed us that students at both schools had been advised not to speak with us. In spite of that warning, however, those students came to hear firsthand about our message, and two students from CBC also approached us later in the day.

We then traveled to Shawnee, Oklahoma for our visit to Oklahoma Baptist University. We wanted to attend chapel with the students there, which is something we had gotten to do at our first stop at Dordt College. Worshipping alongside students there had been wonderful, and we were looking forward to sharing that experience with students at Oklahoma Baptist. When we
came to the sidewalk in front of the chapel, we were each individually turned away. Five of the Riders continued, and I watched my friends getting arrested for attempting to join our peers in worship. That is one picture that will stay in my mind forever.

The next day we made a tapestry to give to the president of OBU, filled with Bible verses and reminders of LGBT students who have been silenced within Christian Universities. I watched six more of my friends get arrested when they carried the tapestry on campus.

On a more positive note, all of these actions spurred a lot of discussion among students and community members. Even though we were not allowed to step on campus, students sought us out on the public roads nearby, and in local parks.

After the last day we were there on campus, we went to a nearby park and sat in large circles with students, talking about the arrests and about the atmosphere of their campus. The students I talked to mentioned their desire to engage in the kinds of conversations we were having, and were as sad as we are that we were not able to have them on campus.

Tomorrow we journey to Waco, Texas to begin our week at Baylor University and Mississippi College.

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It's never too late to support Mandy and the other riders as they continue their journey.

You can learn more about the Equality Ride and view the schedules as well as contribute to Mandy specifically or to the ride in general.