The Book of Acts in the Bible tells us the story of Philip and the Ethiopian. Irrespective of one’s religious preferences, the basic elements of this story produce a valuable antidote for addressing the woes that the Ole Miss community finds itself dealing with. The story begins with an angel of the Lord instructing Phillip to “go south to the road — the desert road — that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza” (Acts 8:26 New International Version). While Philip is traveling along this road he encounters an Ethiopian man in a chariot. The lesson is found in the subsequent verses. Acts 8:30 reads, “Then Philip ran up to the chariot and heard the man reading Isaiah the prophet. ‘Do you understand what you are reading?’ Phillip asked.”
The response of the Ethiopian will be the focus of this column. Acts 8:31 reads, “‘How can I,’ he said, ‘unless someone explains it to me?’ So he invited Phillip to come up and sit with him.” In this column, I’m simply asking for permission to come up into your proverbial chariot to explain a reason hateful actions transpire. The two main reasons are a lack of knowledge and perspective. Hopefully, through this column I can provide a bit of both.
Within every troubling incident that occurs on our beloved campus lies an opportunity for growth, both personally and institutionally. After much deep introspection, I stumbled upon a way in which we can use the actions of a few to change the consciousness of many. We cannot control how external individuals use the ignorant, insensitive, hatred-driven actions of three men to characterize our campus community. But we can learn a lesson about the pervasiveness of stereotypes. Typically, I refrain from isolating segments of our campus. But honestly, I feel as though the lesson which needs to be learned cannot be done without being direct. Before I delve into the crux of my thoughts, I ask that you read my Facebook status, which prompted me to write this column.
I wrote, “There is a lesson to be learned in the midst of this chaos the Ole Miss community is currently enveloped in. For those of you who feel anger from the fact that the acts of two individuals will shape the national conscience, further perpetuating an ingrained stereotype about our school … I want to welcome you to the world of stereotypes. It sucks. It is unfair. But think about this … You can go somewhere and no one will know that you are an Ole Miss student, thus the stigma is not automatically attached to you. Imagine how walking around black must feel.”
Having more knowledge about the other is the first step in eradicating hate. I want to invite each white student on campus to reflect on how you feel when you have to defend an unjust stereotype about Ole Miss. Reflect on how powerless you feel because you are judged by the actions of others. But, in your reflection never lose sight of the privilege you possess that allows you to dissociate yourself from Ole Miss whenever you please. Black people can never readily change our association with blackness, as it branded on every inch of our bodies. It is a weight that we carry. It is heavy weight that can be mentally taxing to carry. But honestly, it is weight that will ultimately make us stronger (not as in stronger than white people, just stronger in general) in the end. So, Ole Miss students, I’m asking you to go the mental gym and begin lifting. If we lift long enough, we will become strong soon enough.
In his last address as president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, Martin Luther King Jr. asked the question, “Where do we go from here?” I’m asking the same one today. First, we need to head to the mental gym and empathize with the plight of others. Second, we have to straighten our backs and stand up to injustice. King said, “A man can’t ride your back unless it’s bent.” You can insert negative national publicity in place of “a man” if it helps.
Let me end by finishing the story of Philip and the Ethiopian. After Philip got in the chariot, he traveled with the Ethiopian and clarified the Scripture he had been reading. In some time, they came across some water. The Ethiopian asked, “What can stand in the way of my being baptized?” I can envision Philip saying, “Nothing, my friend. Let me take you down in the water myself.”
After the baptismal of the Ethiopian, the Bible says that “the Spirit of the Lord suddenly took Philip away … but (the Ethiopian) went on his way rejoicing.” As graduation looms in May, I too will go away from this campus. Hopefully through my writing I will have changed someone, even if it’s just one person, so that they too may rejoice and begin spreading a message of empathy and understanding that will ultimately provide the campus atmosphere we all want. I will always be associated with my black skin by default, but I will always choose to be associated with Ole Miss. This is why I write the way I write — because of my intense love for this place and for every single Ole Miss Rebel.
Tim Abram is a senior Public Policy Leadership major from Horn Lake.
