The Carl Spain Center kicked off Black History Month Tuesday with a prayer walk around the Lunsford Trail. This walk commemorates the 60th anniversary of the first black students to enroll at Abilene Christian University. Organizers say they hope the walk reminds the Abilene community to show inclusiveness, compassion, and righteousness.
Jerry Taylor, founding director of the Carl Spain Center, says the community has not yet ended divisions between people from different backgrounds, “We have started down the right road in regards to history, but we still have a lot more traveling to do in terms of making sure that all human beings, regardless of race and gender, are accepted and made to feel welcome here at Abilene Christian University.”
Taylor said he encourages Christians to stand together for what they believe in and to continue gathering to push forward to a community without division.
ACU has shifted today’s Black History Month event online due to inclement weather. The university is making a live stream available beginning at 7 p.m. for Brandon Jones' talk about the realities for students of color and creating experiences that engage differences. Jones is an ACU alumnus and the associate director for student learning and development at The University of Texas at Austin.