Central Bible College: Our First Act of Civil Disobedience

Pre-visit to Campus

We arrived to Springfield, Illinois coming from a great stop at Dordt College in Sioux Center, Iowa. We knew at the beginning that it was likely that Central Bible College would not be as pleasant a stop. We relentlessly pursued conversation with the administrators at the school, who told us again and again that our voice was not welcome, that this was a conversation that the school did not need or want.

We thought otherwise. I listened to a chapel service online from CBC concerning sexuality and listened in pain as the speaker said that the opposite of homosexuality is not heterosexuality, but holiness. My heart broke as I thought of my gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender friends, many who are certainly more “holy†than I am, but by virtue of my sexual orientation (I am a straight ally) I am considered to be a better person.

This is simply not true and because of messages like this, where lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people are told they are sick and sinful by virtue of who they are, we felt the conversation was needed at Central Bible College. I could only imagine the way closeted students at this school feel. Not to mention that the mission of the school is to “train ministers and missionaries.†How are these students being trained to respond to LGBT people?

So we went to try to dialogue, knowing that there was a possibility of arrest…

Campus Visit

We arrived to a campus nearly empty of students but quite full of police and security guards. There were police scattered throughout campus, including on the roofs of buildings. I felt as though we had just walked into a stakeout… I was shocked at the intensity of the scene and the number of police. Why were they so scared of us? Soulforce has never been more than a peaceful group that seeks dialogue, only resorting to nonviolent resistance when necessary. Apparently they thought otherwise. They claimed they wanted to protect their students? From what? Conversation?

We began a silent vigil only a few steps off campus to embody the silence LGBT have to deal with daily on the campus. As time went by, we sang in one voice the song “We Shall Overcome.â€

The song switched to “Ohm Shanti,†which I knew was my cue. We, as a group, had decided the day before that I would be one of the individuals to walk on campus, which meant a likelihood of arrest. As a creative act of non-violent resistance, it would be only Abby and I who would walk onto campus. The school was certainly prepared for something along the lines of an invasion, so I wonder how they responded when two young straight white girls slowly walked on to campus carrying only Bibles…

Being Arrested

As Abby and I walked forward, I felt a slew of emotions, ranging from intense empowerment to intense fear. It was not every day that I walked on somewhere knowing I may get arrested and going anyways. It was not everyday that I directly defied a school president and broke a law. In fact, it was the first time I was doing this…

Abby and I made it about fifty feet and headed towards the chapel when we were approached by about 6 police officers. They told us to stop where we were (which we did) and that we were arrested for trespassing on private property. We handed over our Bibles, were handcuffed and pat searched in front of our peers, administrators, and reporters. We were then escorted through campus to a sort of station they set up near the back of the school. We stood there handcuffed for about half an hour, as students passed by and pointed (they were now free to walk around campus, apparently, now that we were ‘no longer a threat’). We were patted down again and were placed into the police van, “the paddywagon†and taken to the jail.

At the jail, we were placed in the holding cell for a short period of time, and then were patted down yet again. We waited as paperwork was processed and were then booked (fingerprints and photo) and were released. We walked outside to about half of our group who gave us big hugs and snacks.

The experience was crazy. The worst part of the experience was the process, it is long and boring and a little dehumanizing. In jail, I felt more like a number to be processed or an animal to be herded, rather than a person who broke the law.

A lot of people asked: was it worth it? Certainly. Spending a few hours in jail and having a misdemeanor on my record is a small price to pay for a cause that I believe in so much. I am not the James in the school whose heart breaks every time he hears someone says something negative about his (closeted) identity, who has to deal with his friends gay jokes, who thinks he will marry a girl just because it is the thing to do. I am not the Jessica who hangs herself in her dorm room because she cannot seem to reconcile her sexual identity with her Christian faith, and cannot deal with the pain of trying to. I am not the Joey who is interrogated and than expelled from school due to his homosexual orientation, or the Brittany who gets kicked out of the navy for being in a relationship with a female. It is most definitely worth it and I will continue to be willing to be arrested until Brittany can date a girl without fear and Jessica is not in an environment that makes her think life is not worth living.

Panera & the Park

After leaving jail, we had a wonderful lunch at Panera Bread where community members came to support us and a few students from Evangel University (another Assemblies of God school) came to talk with us. After lunch, we returned to CBC to stand vigil for a few more hours, and then spent time with people from the community at a nearby park, where they graciously had provided dinner for us. The community of Springfield was amazingly welcoming and affirming.

Conclusion

I do not know what sort of emotive word I would use to sum up the day. It was good in that it showed the riders, and especially myself, the gravity of the situation LGBT people face and encouraged me to continue “fighting the good fight.†On the other hand, it was depressing to have been ignored by the school and arrested just because we seek dialogue about this issue. I look forward to the schools that allow us on campus and also look forward to the schools that do not—because by us coming anyways, students can hear a different voice and see how importance equality for all really is.

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