Four members of the Equality Ride were arrested on charges of trespassing Nov 3 at the Central Baptist College in Arkansas. This is the fifth in a series of arrests the Riders have met with this year.
The Soulforce Q Equality Ride is a youth-organized yearly bus tour that travels to faith-based universities across the country in an effort to create a safer and more inclusive environment for LGBTQ students at these institutions. This year’s Equality Ride will end its six-week tour at the Simmons College of Kentucky on Nov 13.
Lauren Parke, Alex Lundy, Katie Higgins and Enzi Tanner, the four Riders arrested at Central Baptist College, were released later the same afternoon after each paid a $200 bond, according to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. The fines are payed for from the contributions made by Equality Ride’s supporters on the organization’s web site.
“I think it’s unfortunate that they intentionally went to jail to make a point,” Terry Kimbrow, the president of Central Baptist, told the Gazette. He had warned the Riders they would be arrested if they stepped onto campus property.
“A lot of what we do is symbolic,” Rider and co-director Jarrett Lucas explained, adding, ”I think it’s really important to see that we face very real rejection from the followers of Christ.”
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