The Ride That Almost Never Was

When you pour your heart and soul into something you want it to work out okay. One thing you don't expect is to be told there is a possibility that it may not happen.

“So Zak we just had a really big grant fall though. We will know by 4pm today if we are going on the ride.” That was phone call I got yesterday. For the next few hours I prayed, called, emailed, prayed and wondered what would happen to me if the Ride did not happen. At 5:30 I got a phone call saying that the Equality Ride was still on.

In that time I realized something that I never thought of before. If we did not do this work who would? I thought to myself that the Equality Ride not happening is not an option. I realized that as much as I am passionate about this work that it is not longer about me and how I feel about the ride. Its about the students on the campus who are struggling with who they are the faith they have known all their lives. If anything I am much more gracious to be here and humbled to be a part of this work.

We made it to Baltimore today and started into our first day of training this evening. We shared our feelings about what I call Black Tuesday, caught up with each other, ate dinner and settled in. We are making home here in the city for a week. One more week of training and workshops. There will not be a dull moment. I can guarantee you this!

I know some of you are wondering if we still need to raise money. The answer is yes. We still need money. You can donate at www.equalityride.com/donate or www.soulforce.org/zak_rittenhouse. Our work is not possiblie without your support.

From The Road
Zak Rittenhouse
Zak@equalityride.com
www.soulforce.org/zak_rittenhouse


For more information on the Equality Ride and where we are going check out www.equalityride.com!

It's Time To Hit The Road, Almost!

I can't believe its almost here. The 2008 Soulforce Q Equality Ride which I am a part of this year. 18 people. 15 college campuses. 2 months. 1 bus. In a few days I will be hoping on a plane and traveling to Baltimore to reunite with the rest of the Riders. It has been since the middle of July that I last saw any of them but if I know anything, distance means nothing between friends. Once we all arrive in Baltimore it will be one week of continued training, finalizing presentations, and continued hard work to make sure that each one of the school stops each rider planned is ready to go when we get to that community.

Since this is my first blog I guess I should tell you a little about who I am. My name is Zak Rittenhouse, 21 years old and I come from a small, rural, southern Ohio town called Frankfort, about 20 miles east of Chillicothe. My hometown is very conservative and there is a church on every block, needless to say growing up, being a part of the church and a Christian was a big a part of my life. I was your typical active member in my church youth group. Summer mission trips, Friday night football gatherings after the game, and youth choir were all part of my life. I also have been gay for as long as I can remember. When I could first put a name to my feelings I did what any good Christian man would do, I prayed. Hard. I wanted to be straight, I heard what my pastor said about gay people. Then I thought, “If my church can see me doing all this awesome things for Christ, maybe that will change how they see gay people. If they knew that they were talking about they would change their minds.” I told my youth pastor I was gay, and he echoed the same sentiments that my pastor had stated. I never set foot in that church again.

Though I never set foot in that particular church again I knew that God loved me just the way he made me. So I continued to believe and pray that God would send me a message of hope. And boy, did he deliver!

I was sitting at home watching TV and the UCC “Bouncer” add came on. I watched with so much interest and immediately went on the Internet to check it all out. Needless to say, this was the sign I was praying for.

Since then I have been spreading the message that God loves all people, even LGBT people. One of my friends turned me on to Soulforce and the Equality Ride. After a multitude of phone interviews and essays, I found out I landed a seat on the bus this year.

This ride is going to be nothing short of amazing. I am looking forward to so many things! Running with Nick and Nicholas, talking music with Azariah and Manny, learning Russian from Anna, finding cool little vegetarian friendly spots on the road with Lauren, laughing at the thing us country kids do with Rachel, curling up and watching movies on the bus with Alex, Taueret and Cait, learning all I can from Katie, Haven, Jarrett and Bill who are on their third Equality Ride, sharing Americorps stories with Enzi, and laughing and telling jokes with Abby and Danielle, and so many more. These people will become my family while I am on the road, and I could not have picked a better one myself.

Well I am looking forward to many good experiences while on the road, I know it wont all be cupcakes and puppys, however I am ready for the challenge and to spread a message of unconditional, unwavering, love to places where LGBT rarely, if ever, hear that message. Gandhi said, “Be the change you wish to see in the world.” I am ready to be that change. Keep track of me all the riders here and check out out rider pages at http://www.soulforce.org/2008riders to learn more about us. If you have not had the chance please take sometime and donate to one of the amazing riders. We each have a goal of 3500 and without the support of people like you there is no way we would make it! Well folks, I am out of here to go study, read and start packing!

From The Road(Almost)

Zak Rittenhouse

Zak@equalityride.com

www.soulforce.org/zak_rittenhouse

For more information on the Equality Ride and where we are going check out www.equalityride.com!

Ten Equality Riders Arrested at Bethany Lutheran College

(Mankato, Minnesota) April 26, 2007 -- Fifty-two Equality Riders, representing diverse sexual orientations, gender identities, and faith backgrounds, were met by campus security and Mankato police when they walked onto Bethany Lutheran College campus seeking dialogue with students, faculty, and administrators to address the school's anti-gay policy. Over twenty supportive community members, including students from Minnesota State University, Mankato, joined the Riders in this peaceful action. Crowds of students gathered to watch as ten Equality Riders were arrested, while the remaining Riders, community members, and MSU students lined the curb and quietly sang a benediction: "Go now in peace; may the love of God surround you everywhere you go."

Prior to arrest, the Equality Riders spent two-and-a-half hours in silent vigil outside the campus gates. Bethany Lutheran students stopped by to shake hands, thank the Riders for being there, and ask questions. "I support what you are doing 100%," said one Bethany Lutheran senior. An MSU student reiterated that support and added that, coming from a school that welcomed him as a gay man, he felt that it was especially important to stand in solidarity with those who were not welcomed in the same way.

Following the arrest, as many as fifty Bethany Lutheran students joined the Riders for conversations lasting up to two hours.

The Equality Ride visit to Bethany Lutheran College marks the end of a two-month journey across the United States. The eastbound and westbound buses came together for the first and only time to pose the question to Bethany Lutheran: "Will you choose hospitality or rejection?" Riders held photographs from schools that they had visited across the United States, depicting welcoming receptions in which Riders and students worked toward reconciliation, and unwelcoming receptions, many of them ending in arrest.

Despite months spent reaching out to Bethany Lutheran College and the evident interest of students, campus administrators chose the path of rejection in an effort to silence the conversation about faith and identity. The necessity of this conversation was apparent as Bethany Lutheran students flocked to the outskirts of campus to meet with Equality Riders, and later joined Riders and community members for presentations and dialogue at MSU and First Congregational Church UCC, where pastors representing five different denominations voiced their support for the 2007 Soulforce Equality Ride.


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Soulforce Q is the young adult division of Soulforce, a social justice organization that works to end political and religious oppression of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people. For

Soulforce Pics and Rainbow Radio show

The pictures I took at the Bob Jones University Soulforce Equality Ride visit are now posted here.

In addition, Rainbow Radio, the show I co-host here in South Carolina, has put together a show using much of my tape that didn't make it on the podcast. So, check it out here along with all the other shows we've done !

For the latest updates on the Equality Ride, visit Soulforce.

New Whosoever Podcast Featuring Soulforce

Whosoever's newest podcast features the Soulforce Equality Ride stop at Bob Jones University in Greenville, South Carolina, along with an essay by myself entitled, "I Don't Understand Fundamentalists."

Please go to this page to listen and to subscribe to our podcasts:

http://feeds.feedburner.com/WhosoeverPodcasts

Go to equalityride.com to support the Soulforce Equality Riders

Protestors Greet Equality Riders at Bob Jones University

I went to the Soulforce Equality Ride stop in Greenville, SC today at Bob Jones University. It was quite an experience and I'll have photos and a podcast up soon so everyone can experience what the day was like.

The street preaching protesters were very loud and rude. They said they loved us, but I don't believe people who shout at me that they love me, sorry. It reminds me of the scene in "Saved" where the fundamentalist girl nails someone with a Bible and yells, "I am FULL of the love of God."

Uh huh, gotcha, full of love ... well, full of something anyway.

I'll write more on this but for now here is a press release from Soulforce on what happened during the day, and a picture or two.

Greenville, SC, WEDNESDAY April 4, 2007 - Three young women were arrested today, on the anniversary of the death of Martin Luther King Jr., for walking onto the campus of Bob Jones University to engage students in dialogue. These individuals, part of the 2007 Soulforce Equality Ride Eastbound Bus, came to speak with students at the university about its discriminatory policy towards lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) students and the doctrine that sustains it.

Those arrested were Katie Higgins, 24, from Charleston, SC; Amanda Harris, 22, from Little Rock, AR (pictured being taken into custody); and Bronwen Tomb, 23 , from New London, CT. These students were arrested as they attempted to walk on to campus to deliver artwork and a call for change to the campus.

Harris and Tomb both walked on campus carrying pieces of art, that they themselves created, which represented the affects of homophobia within their lives. Higgins walked on after reading a document inspired by and formatted after Luther's 95 theses, in which he brought to light the injustices of the church and called for change. After Higgins' arrest, Mandy Matthias, author of the document and coordinator for the visit to Bob Jones, finished the oration of the theses at the front gate of campus.

Upon arrival to Bob Jones, Equality Riders were met with groups protesting their visit and message of inclusion for God's lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender children. Operation Save America, Truth Ministry, and Americans for Truth were three of the anti-gay groups present. Through bullhorns and homophobic signs, they loudly and forcefully spoke against the acceptance of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people.

Bob Jones students were unable to speak with Equality Riders, but riders believe that they made an impact on the student body. "As I was being arrested I could see hundreds of students looking over at us from the chapel, interested in what was happening. It is unfortunate that BJU administration was so quick to restrict the academic freedom on their campus that should be an integral part of the college experience," said Katie Higgins, co-director for the 2007 Soulforce
Equality Ride, east bus.

Bob Jones University is one of 32 Christian colleges and universities that Soulforce will visit as part of its second annual Soulforce Equality Ride, and the ninth visit on the Eastbound route. The 2007 Equality Ride is a 2-month journey by bus that is taking 50 young adults on 2 distinct routes to schools that actively discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.

Bob Jones is a private Christian college located in Greenville, SC. In letters to individual Equality Riders dated April 4, president Stephen Jones reiterated that "the institution believes the Bible is clear about God's view of homosexual practice" and that there is "no room for dialogue".

Soulforce Q is the young adult division of Soulforce, a social justice organization that works to end political and religious oppression of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender people.

Riders arrested and harassed in Kentucky, welcomed in Alabama

This week began with a schedule change. We had originally planned to be at Union University on Monday, but in light of statements made by Albert Mohler, President of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, we reexamined our route. Dr. Mohler has made public statements claiming that if a biological root for homosexuality is ever found, it would be a parent's duty to attempt to change their child's orientation from the womb.

These statements are not only outrageous, but immoral. He is calling for the eradication of a people group through the use of eugenics. Soulforce, along with other major LGBT rights groups, had repeatedly asked Dr. Mohler to rescind these statements, but they remain on his website with no apology. As a group, we made the decision that we could not stand idly by to let a Christian leader demean the beautiful diversity that God has created in humanity, and we headed to Louisville.

We walked into the president's building, and before we could reach the offices, the doors were closed and locked before us. So we had a sit-in right there in the foyer. We came with the intention to speak to Dr. Mohler and ask him to publicly rescind his harmful statements, as well as issue a public apology. However, rather than even let us speak to Dr. Mohler on the phone, the administration promptly called the police, and after about two hours of sitting on the foyer floor, 12 Riders were arrested, including myself.

With the memory of the past few stops, we did not know what to expect as we were being taken away. As we were loaded onto the paddy wagon, the plastic handcuffs were digging sharply into my wrists, and we sang Amazing Grace. Throughout the process, I was thinking back to my own realizations about voluntary redemptive suffering from last week, and as we spent our hours in jail that night I felt better prepared for what we were going through. We were released after 11 hours and told that our arraignment would be on the 29th, the day we would be traveling to Birmingham. Our attorney represented us and we now have a court date set in April. We do not know what the outcome of the trial will be--there may still be fines or jail time
for us to serve.

Our next stop was at the University of the Cumberlands in Williamsburg, Kentucky. When our bus pulled up, the first thing we noticed was that there were 32 police cars--a ratio of more than one car for every Rider. The bus stopped, and when the first Rider stepped down, they were met by an administrator. He told them to get back on the bus, and then he used the bus PA system to tell the Riders that we were not going to be allowed to get off.

A representative from the police then entered the bus and also gave us an unofficial warning over the PA system. We then got off the bus and stood in a vigil line. We could see a group of students sitting and watching us from a stairwell, but no one came across the street to speak to us yet. As we stood, the police came to tell us that we could not stand still on the public sidewalk, ignoring our right to assembly. They forced us to walk up and down the sidewalk and to keep
moving for the entire time we were there. Then students came down and walked with us, and when two students stopped walking, they were placed under arrest.

This hung heavily on our hearts as we moved on to Birmingham, Alabama. On Friday we went to Samford University to be welcomed on campus for the second time on our trip. We had a wonderful day of dialogue, which we needed so desperately after our experiences from the past weeks. There was a forum, two presentations, a prayer service, and countless conversations all day long. As I was there on campus speaking with students, I had the realization that it felt very different from being at our very first stop at Dordt. The words came naturally, and I spoke from
my heart without feeling awkward or concerned. It hit me that I really feel like an Equality Rider.

We ended our week with a visit to the Civil Rights Institute in downtown Birmingham. We stood on holy ground next to the 16th Street Baptist Church, and saw a bus from the original Freedom Ride, gutted and charred. As I walked through silently, I was reminded that we take our roots from these heroes who were willing to take a stand for their humanity. They suffered so much, and one quote that really hit home for me in light of my recent thoughts was from one of the youths who was in jail. I don't remember it verbatim, but they said something like, "We are willing to stand being in jail for as long as people are willing to stand the way that things are out there."

I have known all along the reasons we are going to these schools, but that reminder to focus on our purpose rather than on the punishment was just what I needed. I feel better equipped to move into this next week.