The Optimist Print Edition 11.04.16

WHAT'S INSIDE

NEWS

Judge Ely’s newest food establishment is hot and ready for your pizza orders.

Page 2

OPINION

In our last editorial before the election, the Editorial Board asks: Does God care who you vote for?

FEATURE

SPORTS

Page 5

Pages 6

Alumna Samantha Sutherland hit the streets of China as a skateboarding evangelist before being arrested.

Page 4

Football prepares for final game at Shotwell Stadium and says farewell to the trusty old field.

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Friday, November 4, 2016 Vol. 105, Issue 12

A student publication of Abilene Christian University since 1912

BLACK LIVES MATTER

LYDIA LAWSON STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER Alumnus Dr. Brandon Jones spoke to a crowd in Hart Auditorium Wednesday night on the Black Lives Matter movement. Jones, coordinator for academic development at Clemson, was invited to speak as a part of Cultural Awareness Week , put on by OMA.

Alumnus explains BLM movement at forum

BY HALEY REMENAR ONLINE MANAGING EDITOR

Cultural Awareness Week discussed “Black Lives Matter” in a forumWednesday night featuring alumnus Dr. Brandon Jones.

Jones, assistant director and coordinator of academic coaching, advising and learning strategy con-

sultingat Clemson University in South Carolina, also spoke at a luncheon Wednesday afternoon to explain the Black Lives Matter movement. Keeping with the week’s theme, “Misunderstood Populations,” he focused the forum on the misunderstandings about both the movement and the phrase

Student athletes organize 5K for pediatric cancer

Highland welcomes Muslim Imam “

BY BRIANNA CLOSE STUDENT REPORTER

A campus 5K run/walk will raise money for Play for Rex foundation, an Abilene based organization-helping families facing pediatric cancer. The Student-Athlete Advisory Committee is hosting the 2nd annual Hudson Wade 5K run/walk. The run/ walk will begin at Hardin Administration building at 9 a.m. on Nov. 19 and go around the Lunsford Trail.

Hudson Wade, age 11, was diagnosed with Leukemia in 2015 and died Feb. 4, 2016.

“Last year, when Hudson was fighting Leukemia, we did this 5K and raised almost $6,000 for the Wade family,” said Kyle Karnei, senior accounting and finance major from Waco and president of SAAC. “We want to keep his name and legacy alive.”

SAAC works with the SEE 5K PAGE 2

BY MERCEDEZ HERNANDEZ PRINT MANAGING EDITOR AND ALLISON BROWN EDITOR IN CHIEF

Highland Church of Christ welcomed Imam Samer Maltabaa of the Lubbock Mosque for a forum geared toward making peace with Muslim-majority parts of the world. The discussion series, titled “To Know and Love Your Muslim Neighbor,” will take place in two parts. It began Wednesday,

itself. About 200 people, including students, faculty and the Abilene community, came to Hart Auditorium to hear Jones speak.

Mickayla Hohhertz, freshman psychology major from Temple, said she attended other sessions throughout the week and thinks the BLM movement is important.

Youlanda

Nov. 2 and will continue Wednesday, Nov. 9 in the church’s main auditorium.

In a video shared on Highland’s Facebook, Monty Lynn, leader of Highland’s peacemaking team and professor of management sciences, invited the church and other members of the community to Wednesday’s discussion with Imam Maltabaa about “common misconceptions of Muslims in Texas, in America, and in the world.”

Hunter, business operations coordinator in the Department of Athletics, came with her husband, James.

Their son attends ACU so they wanted to hear how the issue affects him.

“I just want to kind of get a perspective on where the Black Lives Matter movement is coming from other than what I’ve been reading

If we are going to understand Islam, then we should hear from actual Muslims.”

DERRAN REESE DIRECTOR OF GLOBAL MINISTRIES AT HIGHLAND

Derran Reese, director of global ministries at Highland, said this was the church’s first presentation explicitly about Islam.

and seeing in the news,” James Hunter said. “I just wanted to hear what else was being said.”

The Office of Multicultural Affairs (OMA) showed a video about BLM before Chapel, hosted a luncheon with Jones after Chapel and ended the day’s discussion with the evening forum which was live-streamed on

“The hope is to begin equipping our church, and others from the community, about the core beliefs, practices, and tenets of Islam,” Reese said in an email. “And if we are going to understand Islam, then we should hear from actual Muslims.

Also, this past summer, the imam in Lubbock warmly welcomed a few Highland members when we visited his mosque. We want to respond in kind by being hospitable to him and others

the OMA Facebook page.

In his presentation, Jones started with a historical background about the black community in the U.S. starting in the 16th century and ending with issues in today’s culture, setting the context for the BLM movement. He said it SEE BLM PAGE 3

from his mosque in order to build a relationship of mutual respect and find ways we can partner to be agents of peace and reconciliation in our communities and beyond.”

Hosting Imam Maltabaa is part of Highland’s three global initiatives outlined in 2015 – combatting trafficking in Southeast Asia, welcoming the homeless in Brazil, and making peace in SEE IMAM PAGE 3

Mannequin Heads not connected to ACU

BY MERCEDEZ HERNANDEZ PRINT MANAGING EDITOR

The masterminds behind the viral mannequin-head dance videos have stepped out from under the styrofoam and into an internet spotlight.

Best friends Tina Tobias, a 17-year-old from Flower Mound, and Addie Foster, a 16-year-old from Denton, began uploading videos to their shared YouTube channel TINADDIE this past summer.

The girls’ first mannequin-head video was uploaded Sept. 6 and featured

them dancing to the song “Heathens” by Twenty One Pilots. The video now has 805,683 views and has been succeeded by two other choreographed videos.

The video drew special attention from the ACU community as one of the dancers, Tobias, sports a grey hoodie with Abilene Christian printed on the chest. Tobias said she doesn’t have any ties to the university and is not quite sure how the hoodie came into her possession.

“I actually think the hoodie is my older sister’s friend’s

hoodie,” said Tobias. “I guess it’s just been floating from friend to friend because we really aren’t sure where it originated from, it’s just been sitting around our house.”

Foster said she and Tobias were inspired to make their own mannequin-head video after seeing a video of a girl dancing to “This is Halloween” from ‘The Nightmare Before Christmas’ a few months ago. Foster also said they never expected their “Heathens” video to be as big SEE BLACK LIVES PAGE 3

W W W. A C U O P T I M I S T. C O M

SCREENSHOT FROM YOUTUBE Addie Foster, 16, from Denton, and Tina Tobias, 17, from Flower Mound

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NEW S

5K: joggers to run against cancer CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

athletic administration to build connection between student athletes and the rest of campus. The Southland Conference sets goals for each school’s SAAC to benefit the university’s community with the annual Southland Gives Back event.

“Through tvhe 5K, we can keep his story alive and hope that it reaches others who need to hear of his courageous battle,” said Dorothy Swanson, senior nursing major from Longview and vice president of SAAC. “We want to remember Hudson for his strength while also helping other families going through the same thing.”

More participants in the 5K will raise more money for the Play for Rex foundation. “The main thing we want is for the community and students to show up,” Karnei said.

Play for Rex foundation was created by Lance and Jill Fleming after their son Rex died from a brain tumor. Play for Rex provides pediatric cancer patients with Apple Ipad Touches and ITunes gift cards in hopes of encouraging these young patients. They aim to be a place of support for families experiencing life-threatening illnesses.

Registration for the 5K is online at www.youraze. com/hudsonwade5k for $20 including a t-shirt.

T-shirts can also be purchased separately for $17.

Check-in begins at 8 a.m. outside the Hardin Administration Building.

“They want his story to help others and to never be forgotten,” Swanson said.

OPTIMIST@ACU.EDU

FRIDAY | NOVEMBER 4, 2016

Little Caesars opens off Judge Ely Boulevard

BY COLE WIDDER STUDENT REPORTER

Little Caesars on Judge Ely opened it's doors last Monday.

The location opened with no marketing and chose not to host a grand opening event.

“We just opened the doors and kind of let it happen,” said Justin Whitefield, a manager who moved to Abilene to help open the new location. He said that business has been good, and their busiest time are Fridays and Saturdays from 4-8pm.

Whitefield said they have had people coming in and out often, and Little Caesars

is a place they stop by on their way home.

"Quick, easy dinner on the way home. Good. Cheap,” said Angela, a Little Caesars customer. "I used to drive all the way over to the location on Mockingbird. We needed one over here,” also mentioning that this new location is “almost too close for comfort.”

The Judge Ely location is a different franchise than the other locations in Abilene.

Whitefield said their corporate office asked this franchise group to move into this prime location near universities and schools.

And their best seller? “Our deep dish pepperoni pizza is

EMILY GUAJARDO VISUALS MANAGING EDITOR The store opened last week and serves a variety of "hot and ready" pizza pies.

really popular,” said field.

To order over the call 325-232-7894. goal, according to

Whitephone, Their White-

field, is to have your order ready by the time you arrive.

At this time, the new Judge Ely location is not offering any discounts, but

Whitefield said, “We’ve got coupons going out in the mail on Nov. 6.”

OPTIMIST@ACU.EDU

COBA café sells locally roasted coffee “

BY COLE WIDDER STUDENT REPORTER

The latest coffee craze has finally come to ACU. Key City Coffee is now being sold in the Crossing Road Café in the COBA Business Building.

Key City Coffee is on campus and making life at the café more hectic.

Barista at Crossing Road Café, Kelsey Morlan, said that despite selling only two flavors, “we have been

a lot busier." They are selling the brand's Ethiopia and Huehue flavors.

“We are really excited to get our name out and reach our target market," Owner and coffee bean roaster Daniel Parker said‘. "It has been the best move we have made, and there is been very good business."

Since being locally owned and operated, Parker and his wife Emily have fallen in love with the

This year's festival, called "The Year of Garth Williams," features the unveiling of several new sculptures in the downtown area for the National Center for Children's Illustrated Literature.

And what’s the pig without the spider? Broderick created Charlotte, an intricately designed spider. He said he had to make all the little pieces of Charlotte

We are really excited to get our name out and reach our target market.”

city. The reason behind Key City is based upon that love.

Parker said that they feed off of the city's love of coffee and its rich his-

tory in roasting coffee. He figured this out by finding out that Abilene had a large roaster back in the time of the second world war.

They also wanted to support the city by bringing in new jobs and local commerce. They are the only local roaster.

Not only is Key City at ACU, but they have several different businesses that are selling their product as well. Key City is being

sold at business such as Monks, Beltway Coffee, and Abi-haus.

Monks has seen a steady rate of business in selling Key City Coffee. Monks barista Autumn Moody said, “It has gained a lot of attention."

“People love things that originate from Abilene," said Moody.

separately, then meld them together once they were ready to be assembled. He said another sculptor will add a stainless steel web to the piece later.

Broderick and Steve Neves, associate professor of art at Hardin-Simmons University, have been working in unison on this project.

Neves sculpted the models of the sculptures and brought them to Broderick.

Broderick continued the process by making molds of the models and then creating bronze casts of them.

“I don’t really know where they first came up with the idea," Broderick said. "They had bought some Dr. Seuss sculptures which had just been cast, and they just kept going with it. And year by year it just keeps getting bigger and bigger.”

Broderick's first storybook sculpture was Seymour, a piece located on top of the Chamber of Commerce building and inspired by the book series "Can you see what I see?" He also helped create the Duck on a Bike sculpture and the Sandman sculpture.

DANIEL PARKER OWNER OF KEY CITY COFFEE

OPTIMIST@ACU.EDU

Literature festival to bring colorful characters

BY DEREK MARCELAIN STUDENT REPORTER

That's some pig sitting in the sculpture workshop behind the Don Morris Building.

Geoffrey Broderick, professor of art, finished casting Wilbur, a character from Garth William's Charlotte’s Web, for next summer's Children's Art and Literacy Festival downtown.

OPTIMIST@ACU.EDU

POLICE LOG SELECTED ACUPD CALLS FOR THE WEEK 10/25/2016 08:55 a.m.

A student reported that their bike had been stolen the previous week. ACUPD had already recovered the bike an investigation, but had been unable to identify its owner. The owner’s report allowed ACUPD to determine ownership and return of the bike.

10/26/2016 12:35 p.m.

A student reported that an unknown driver/vehicle had struck his truck in the WPAC lot. The driver of the striking vehicle fled the scene without calling ACUPD or leaving Texas law mandated identifying information; investigation to continue.

11/03/2016 12:46 a.m.

A student reported a prowler at their residence in the 800 block of N. Judge Ely. Officers checked the area, unable to locate.

911 CALL ACCIDENT ADMINISTRATIVE ACTIVITY ALARM ALCOHOL INCIDENT BARRICADES BUILDING LOCK/UNLOCK BURGLARY (MOTOR VEHICLE) CHECK BUILDING CITATION ISSUANCE CRIMINAL MISCHIEF DISTURBANCE

3 3 17 6 1 2 17 4 258 1 1 1 1

DOMESTIC DISTURBANCE ESCORT FIRE FOOT PATROL FOUND PROPERTY HIT & RUN INFORMATION REPORT INVESTIGATION FOLLOW UP MAINTENANCE UNIVERSITY ASSETS: CCTV MAINTENANCE: UNIVERSITY ASSETS

1 1 2 73 8 1 4 13 5 1

MEDICAL EMERGENCY MONITOR FACILITY/LOT MOTORIST ASSIST: JUMPSTART MOTORIST ASSIST: OTHER MOTORIST ASSIST: UNLOCK NOISE VIOLATION OTHER PARKING LOT PATROL PARKING VIOLATION PATROL VEHICLE: MAINTENANCE

3 3 7

PATROL VEHICLE: REFUEL PUBLIC SERVICE RANDOM PATROL RECKLESS DRIVING 1 REPORT WRITING 10 SUICIDE (ATT & ACTUAL) SUSPICIOUS ACTIVITY 6 SUSPICIOUS PERSON 1 SUSPICIOUS VEHICLE 28 THEFT 5 WELFARE CHECK 1 TOTAL: 516

9 1 30 1 11 1 1 3 1 3 2

POLICE CHIEF TIP OF THE WEEK:

The ACU area is seeing an increase in vehicle burglaries. Always lock your car, hide valuables, and report suspicious activity to ACUPD immediately.

N E WS

FRIDAY | NOVEMBER 4, 2016

Mannequin: Teens to continue videos CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

of a hit as it was.

“When we first posted the “Heathens” video we had no idea it was gonna blow up,” said Foster. “It was so crazy to us and people seemed to love it. We thought maybe we could try a second video and when it blew up just the same we knew this was going to be a trend for us.”

Tobias and Foster met in a dance class 5 years ago and their dance backgrounds can be seen by their fancy footwork in their videos. Funny choreography is always a crowd pleaser, but why include mannequin heads? Tobias

“

When we first posted the “Heathens” video we had no idea it was gonna blow up,” ADDIE FOSTER 16, FLOWER MOUND

said the styrofoam heads just add another layer of humor to their videos.

“Honestly, mannequin heads are so funny,” said Tobias. “We got them from a Hobby Lobby by my house and I was trying them on with my hoodie in the store and it was so funny. Something about those long necks make everything a hundred times funnier.”

Producing a video takes about 3 hours, Tobias said, most of which is spent choreographing dance moves.

“Sometimes we choreograph ahead of time, but for the most part we just do it section by section on the spot,” said Tobias. “It really doesn’t take to long to edit, probably about 1520 minutes maximum.”

Foster said she and Tobias are brainstorming future video ideas and are striving to maintain a consistent uploading schedule on their YouTube channel.

“We are constantly thinking of new ideas for videos and usually put out polls on Twitter for our followers to vote on what they want to see next,” Foster said. “We try to post every Sunday on our Youtube channel TINADDIE so you can see our newest videos there.”

To check out Tobias and Foster’s videos, visit their YouTube channel at youtube.com/TINADDIE or follow them on Twitter @ tinaddie_.

MMH13A@ACU.EDU

Maker Lab, SITC design virtual reality goggles

BY CHELSEA TWOHY STUDENT REPORTER

The future of virtual reality on the ACU campus can be seen through the lenses of 200 cardboard goggles that were handed out at the SITC chapel on Tuesday.

The School of Information Technology and Computing and the Maker Lab collaborated in using the concept of the Google Cardboard virtual reality project in order to design a cost-effective, easy-to-assemble goggle for students to use.

The goggles have a simple design that makes it easy for the user to assemble in less than five minutes. The user will then slip their smartphone into the

provided slot and access the virtual reality scene through the software available via an app on their device.

The idea for the VR specs came from the Google Cardboard design, which is available to download online for personal DIY purposes.

Dr. Nil Santana, assistant professor of art and design, said he thought “it would be fun to give a shot at designing our own goggles that would be easy to assemble, cost efficient and a better use of materials.”

Santana spent eight weeks working with Darren Wilson, the Maker Lab coordinator, figuring out appropriate specs for this new cost-effective design.

Systems Administrator for the School of Information Technology and Computing, Brandon Delano, who was in charge of the logistics for the project, said, “They found a way to be able to produce from 33 percent of the cardboard,” which means that they can produce three eyepieces from the same material and price that one would cost with the original Google design.

Brianna Burton, a senior DET major from Missouri, and Hannah Macune, a sophomore DET major from Weatherford, used the laser cutter in the Maker Lab to cut-out, clean and seal in manila envelopes 183 goggles that were given to students at chapel.

Wilson said he hopes the Digital Entertainment and Technology (DET) department could work on developing virtual reality tours that could be accessed by users in their living rooms after being mailed the assembly kit.

Dr. Brian Burton, associate professor of digital entertainment and technology, used the Battle of Gettysburg as an example of how virtual reality could be applied in history lessons.

Burton said, “Imagine if you were actually there experiencing the battle.”

Burton said, “I would love to see ACU become one of the leaders in VR, especially from a Christian viewpoint.”

At the SITC departmen-

tal chapel where the goggles were handed out, guest speaker and the director of instructional design Berlin Fang asked if education is driving technology, or if technology is driving education.

“We’re just beginning to experiment with it, just beginning to create with it, we are waiting to see what happens,” Burton said.

For students who are interested in learning more about how to get immersed in virtual reality, the DET will be holding interest meetings on Thursdays at 6:30 p.m. on the third floor of COBA in room 301.

OPTIMIST@ACU.EDU

BLM: alumnus presents on race relations CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

to tell people to forget the Holocaust or the Trail of Tears, yet many Americans will tell black people to forget what their ancestors suffered in this nation by slavery.

Jones included issues ranging from the original “Birth of a Nation” film, to Colin Kaepernick, the confederate flag and the Voting Rights Act. Jones then included Scripture, saying “all lives matter” to God in John 3:16, but Jesus does call out specific groups, such as “Blessed are the poor in spirit,” in Matthew 5:3. Jesus said what people do for “the least of these” they do for Him, so Jones said, “It’s ok to say that specific lives matter.”

Jones listed Biblical solutions for supporting black lives, including Genesis 4:10 when God says, “Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground.” Jones said although he doesn’t agree completely with the original BLM movement, the movement started addressing the situation in a way Christians have not yet done.

“The movement, I think, is very important,” Jones said. “But at the same time, I don’t necessarily agree with everything they stand for as an organization but I appreciate the fact that they’re out there on the front lines forcing this conversation to happen.”

Jones said Jesus spent time with lepers, the blind, the lame and prostitutes. He used Exodus 4:12, in which the Egyptians fear Israelite slaves multiplying, to say that the black community has strength in numbers, but many people don’t like that.

He also said in Micah 6:8 the

Lord requires people to “do justice.” Jones said the most practical solution is to “start where you are” just as Moses started the Exodus with a staff.

“Jesus pointed specifically to that group and said, ‘Your life matters,’” Jones said. “’As a leper, as a sinner, your life matters. And it matters so much I’m gonna die for it.’

Jesus isn’t asking us to die for anybody’s sins, he’s asking us to love and care for these people as he did.”

The forum ended with questions and audience members asked for practical solutions, how the church should respond, the difference between white privilege and racism, and how to reach out to those who are ignorant about racial issues.

Jones said although the forum could make some people uncomfortable, he believes students need to have conversations about things they don’t agree with.

LYDIA LAWSON STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER Brandon Jones gave an hour-long presentation on race relations in America.

Angeles Flores,freshman English education major from Houston, said she enjoyed the forum because she was already supporting BLM but she wanted to learn more.

“I’m a minority as well, but I don’t feel as much oppression as they do, and I

want to know how we can help it,” Flores said. “I liked how everyone had questions and tried to gain more understanding.”

Jones graduated from ACU with a degree in graphic design in 2006, then got his Master’s of Education in 2009. He worked in the First-

Year Program for several years as a peer advisor. Jones said while he was a student, the university had many underlying racial tensions and the university has since then taken steps to include more minority students. However, he said ACU and universities throughout the country still need to work to retain minority students.

Prentice Ashford, director of the Office of Multicultural Affairs, said OMA gave “Black Lives Matter” t-shirts to students who participated in a video, and will be taking orders for the same shirts starting Friday. The letters “I” and “matter” are highlighted red, while the rest of the letters are white on black cloth.

HRR13B@ACU.EDU

Imam: Church hosts Islam series CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

Hosting Imam Maltabaa is part of Highland’s three global initiatives outlined in 2015 – combatting trafficking in Southeast Asia, welcoming the homeless in Brazil, and making peace in the Muslim-majority world.

“Highland has some experience with the first two initiatives, but we have no history with engaging the Muslim-majority world.

However, we feel this is a vital work for the church today,” Reese said. “Therefore, we are taking 3-4 years to equip our church to understand Islam and become loving, peacemaking neighbors to Muslims, both near and far.”

Reese said these conversations are important to dispel pop culture notions of the Muslim religion, and noted that understanding begins with listening.

“People hear a lot in the news and other forms of media about Muslims, and they develop attitudes and

3

understandings of Muslims that are often inaccurate and unfair. Yet, many have never interacted with Muslims,” Reese said. “For those who want to pursue peace and reconciliation with other people, including Muslims, then we must begin with listening to those people. This is an opportunity to begin that the process of peacemaking by humbly listening to a Muslim on his own terms and hopefully discovering connection points for future dialogue and work for the common good.I have dear friends who are Muslim, and my life is better off because I know them.”

Highland’s series will continue next Wednesday, Nov. 9, where Dr. John Azumah, associate professor of World Christianity and Islam at Columbia Theological College in Georgia, will share more on Christian-Muslim peacemaking efforts.

AKB12B@ACU.EDU

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O PI N I ON

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ED IT O R IA L

FRIDAY | NOVEMBER 4, 2016

Does God care who you vote for this election? the truth that the president is important but not ultimate, that joys or sorrows are short-lived, that candidates (and voters) are deeply flawed sinners. We can feel good about our vote as engaged and participating citizens subject to the sovereignty of God regardless of the e l e c t i o n’s outcome.

Our hope isn’t in the ruler of the United States, though our present reality may seem to be dominated by him or her.

In an opinion piece in Christianity Today, Joel E. Landis and Timothy W. Taylor said, “By understanding that one is powerless over ultimate consequences, our civic engagement becomes an act of worship to a proviBEN TODD CARTOONIST dential God who is

THE ISSUE

People on both ends of the political spectrum use their faith as a factor in determining who they vote for. Does God care who we give our vote to?

OUR TAKE

Perhaps the way you view voting as a whole is more important to God than the candidate who gets your vote.

The end of the election is less than a week away and soon conversations will shift from “Which candidate will win?” to “Okay, well, now what?”

It’s no secret that this election has been one of the most divisive and volatile races America has ever seen, and Christians across the spectrum have spoken out for and against nearly every hot button issue in the book. So as election day comes nearer, we have been wondering – does God care who we vote for?

This particular race has made this question harder to think through because both major party candidates have obvious flaws,

and neither fit well into w h a t m o s t evangelicals would h o p e for as a pr e s i d e nt .

What happens on November 9 when someone has won and the other has lost? How can we feel good about voting at all?

We can feel good about our vote if we approach voting as a civic sacrament, a privilege to weigh the options and affirm our convictions and opinions.

We can feel good about our vote if we hold on to

Daily Doodle Dosage

Grub is just weird for everyone

@acuoptimist @HAYLEEANNE87 OCT. 31 4:57 P.M.

EMILLION HERE, EMILLION THERE

Another day another broke wallet because Target iiiiii hhaatteee mmyysselllfff

EMILY GUAJARDO VISUALS MANAGING EDITOR Junior convergence journalism major San Antonio

@RACHELLMCGG6 OCT. 31, 10:09 P.M.

for halloween this year I have decided to go as a dead person. dead as in asleep.

@ALLENTMARTIN NOV. 1 1:27 A.M.

Don’t you dare jump straight into Christmas season, completely skipping no-shave November

@BAILEYMARSHALLL NOV. 3 12:46 A.M.

when college boys have “entrepreneur” or “investor” in their bios... like what, what do u invest in???? chicken nuggets???

@ELLENJOHNSON13 NOV. 3 3:00 P.M.

Man that lives 2 blocks from us has a meat smoker.

Whole neighborhood smells like ham right now

@POCOLOCOELIJAH NOV. 3 3:00 P.M.

If Jesus took COMMS211, even he would strongly resent his TA.

@MEGANFRIDGE NOV. 3 2:09 P.M.

“Hey weren’t you here yesterday?” – worker at Sharky’s who is not afraid to call ya girl out

Grub is just awkward.

First off, you’re basically forced to bring someone whom you don’t really know or have only spoken to on rare occasion. Unless you’re one of the few people on campus who has thousands of options to take (congregations) or already have a significant other, it’s pretty hard to find a date with our already 60-40 percent boy to girl ratio.

You’re forced to start asking your friends who they are taking and if their

RATED R

@EM_ILY_95 NOV. 3 2:40 A.M.

I’ve never felt as basic as the moment I teared up when I realized peppermint mocha is back at Starbucks

@KAYLALIKESCATS NOV. 2 12:22 A.M.

Today was one of those days where I realized that my underwear was on inside out pretty early in the day but I did nothing to fix it

@AUSTINKILCULLEN NOV. 1 9:44 A.M.

Walked up on a group of freshmen two-stepping in the library parking lot. Where am I?

What’s your plan for voting? I went after class today and voted early while getting groceries. Took less than 5 minutes.

HALEY REMENAR ONLINE MANAGING EDITOR Junior convergence journalism major Albuquerque, New Mexico

Victor Hugo’s novel “Les Miserables” tells the story of a group of students in 19th century Paris rising up against their government.

The students fought in a violent rebellion, but the uprising was put out by the French government before a change could be made.

Hugo’s story doesn’t ask whether or not the students should have rebelled, but instead asks what causes are worth living and dying for.

On Wednesday, a group of students stood up for what they believed in, the Black Lives Matter movement, just like the students in “Les Miserables.”

When I watch the play, I feel empowered, but when I went to the Black Lives Matter forum, I didn’t feel empowered. Because I’m

personal attacks, obscenity, defamation, erroneous information or invasion of privacy. Please limit letters to 350 words or fewer. A name and phone number must be included for verification purposes. Phone numbers will not be published.

Address letters to: ACU Box 27892 Abilene, TX 79609 E-mail letters to: optimist@acu.edu

part-white, part-Hispanic, I don’t really fit into either a majority or minority category.

Maybe you also feel confused about Black Lives Matter. Maybe it makes you uncomfortable to see people wearing t-shirts and supporting this movement, which has been considered both beneficial and violent by different parties.

You’re not alone.

Here’s a few things I learned from last night’s forum: It’s not the phrase that makes people uncomfortable, it’s the group. It’s easy to look at an individual person and say “I love you and you matter.”

But it’s difficult to look at a group and say the same thing. Just like being the

T H E

EDITORIAL AND LETTER POLICY Unsigned editorials are the opinions of the Optimist and may not necessarily reflect the views of the university or its administration.

Signed columns, cartoons and letters are the opinions of their creators and may not necessarily reflect the viewpoints of the Optimist or the university.

The Optimist encourages reader response through letters to the editor but reserves the right to limit frequent contributors or to refuse to print letters containing

make a new friend along the way as you silently eat your cold pasta and peach cobbler. If you don’t want a weird night filled with awkward stares and small talk, just take a friend or go stag. Be brave and show the world that you don’t need a date to have fun; the classic party of me, myself and I. So, if you’re stressing about who to take or how it already went, rest assured that grub is the least of your problems. Focus on more important things in life. It’s only one night, anyways. We can all live with a little humiliation once in awhile.

EAG13A@ACU.EDU

A time to decide who we are

Do I get bonus points for showing up to my 8am even though it’d been cancelled?

*sprints up and down Gardner hallway to stay awake in order to keep studying*

date has a potential friend even willing to go with you in exchange for a free shirt and food. And even if they don’t have anyone, you are now scrambling to look for people in every overpopulated area on campus. You basically start stalking people; their composure, their looks and their personality all for the sake of a good picture and a good time. You are constantly stressed day in and day out and for what? For the “date” to go smoothly?

For that extra like on In-

stagram? For that possible love interest, so that they don’t hate you in the long run?

You could say Grub is just another thing we choose to freak out about.

Here’s a thought: stop worrying about it.

For whose you don’t know, grub is simply an event where you dress up in a costume, get to eat free food, get a shirt and go home. Short. Sweet. To the point with no funny business in between.

As an club officer and fellow friend, I’m here to tell you that grub is not worth stressing over and it’s all over before you know it. No matter what club you’re in or not in, grub is something nobody really cares about. At most, you can potentially

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sovereign over all things, politics included.”

God establishes authority, but earthly rulers are temporary. The Christian story throughout history is one of God’s children living under governments and rulers that clash with their beliefs. Even in hostile political environments, we can’t unplug ourselves from the process and proceed to complain about the results. We must live fully present and fully engaged lives by respecting the governmental process of voting and not withdrawing from the reality facing us.

In case you missed it, God’s not a Democrat or a Republican - so don’t try to pin that on your vote as justification. However, look at your options, make a choice, and know that your vote does not completely define who you are or who God is.

unpopular kid in middle school, not being a part of the group in the Black Lives Matter movement makes it difficult to sympathize.

Being uncomfortable is part of college, but it’s not easy. We didn’t come to college to agree about everything. We came to college to learn, so we shouldn’t be angered by the university choosing to discuss this issue. However, facing all of your emotions about this, especially when it has so much to do with your identity, can be hard for everyone involved.

The Black Lives Matter movement should make us think about our values.

Like the characters in “Les Miserables,” we have to make a choice about what we are willing to fight for.

If you disagree with the university’s decision to host the forum, do you believe it’s worth fighting about? As a black student, do you believe Black Lives

Matter should be valued or do you have other causes to fight for? As students, we should devote ourselves to causes worthy of our time and energy. Maybe you don’t agree with Black Lives Matter, but maybe this week’s discussion topic should encourage you to stand up for the cause you do believe in.

In the musical version of the “Les Miserables”, adapted for the stage in 1985, one of the student leaders sings about this very idea. He says, “It is time for us all to decide who we are. Do we fight for the right to a night at the opera now? Have you asked of yourselves, what’s the price you might pay?

Is this simply a game for a rich young boy to play?

The colours of the world are changing day by day.” (“ABC Café / Red And Black”)

HRR13B@ACU.EDU

O P T I M IST

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F E ATUR E S

FRIDAY | NOVEMBER 4, 2016

5

LAUREN FRANCO STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER Alumna Samantha Sutherland (‘12) has spent the past three years working as a skateboard missionary in China.

Another day at the office

From skateboarding to preaching to getting arrested, Sutherland has stories to tell

BY ABBEY BOWLING ARTS & FEATURES EDITOR

S

amantha Sutherland is the actual representation of Acts 1:8. If you’ve ever stepped foot inside a church, you probably know the verse – the one about preaching the gospel to the ends of the earth. After graduating with a degree in advertising and public relations in December 2012, Sutherland grabbed her skateboard and bought a one-way ticket halfway across the world.

For the past three years, Sutherland has worked with the organization Calling All Skaters, a group that equips skateboarders to become missionaries before sending them around the world to outreach locations, including hubs in Europe, Asia, South America and across the U.S. – Sutherland chose China. Her goal in China was to work with a local skateboarding company run by Christians to target skateboarders with the message of Christ through their graphics, their media and their personal relationships.

“I’m sure that in all the missions training, they make it pretty clear that moving to a foreign country is hard, but maybe I wasn’t paying attention,” Sutherland said. “It definitely is hard to live in any culture that is that different from your own culture, and honestly, I think the hardest part that I struggled with was this feeling of not being known and not being able to connect with people because of communication barriers and cultural differences.”

Eventually, she was able to connect with locals. She was one of the first Christian women to go into the Chinese skate community, where she found a need for discipleship.

She wrote a book in Chinese to help the other women skateboarders start their journey of faith and to provide support when she wasn’t there, which also helped them develop closer relationships.

Sutherland also aided the skateboarding company with their media – which meant figuring out the censored Chinese social media. After becoming familiar with new outlets, she was able to help the skate shop determine how Chinese consumers use media and how to position the foreign skateboarding brand in a different market.

Skateboarding provided not only an easy way to connect with locals, but also a cover in case they were

caught by the Chinese government. It’s illegal to evangelize in China. Sutherland did get caught and arrested, not just once, but twice – in two separate countries. The first happened in China, when she was caught in an unmarked military zone.

“I didn’t know what I was doing and obviously it was an innocent act, but the way things work in China is they just kind of build up and build up until it’s this huge crisis and no one really knows how it began,” Sutherland explained. “I was handed off to different interrogation teams, and I was detained for 10 hours.” nce she hit the second level of interrogation, she realized this wasn’t going to be a quick release. Her mind raced to brainstorm the worst case scenario – being blacklisted from the country.

“I accepted that even if the worst happened, it was going to be OK,” she said. “I could have jeopardized every missionary in that city that I knew that was connected through my phone...my whole team could have been sent home.

I could have gotten local people arrested, so much damage could have come from that and I could have been on a plane that night not even having a chance to go back and say goodbye and never been allowed into China again.”

Her backpack was also full of incriminating things that could dig her into an even deeper hole.

“It was really unusual, because they took my phone, and they’re interrogating me, and I’m sitting here with my backpack on, and they’re not doing anything about it,” she said. “It wasn’t until they flew in the national security team, which is like the equivalent of the FBI in China, they warned me that the team was coming so I asked to go to the bathroom...I had been praying for the last two hours straight, if I have a chance alone with my backpack, what do I get rid of and what do I keep? God was very clear, like throw this away, get rid of this, delete this. They let me go into the public bathroom with my backpack on and I have like 15 seconds to decide what to do...so I’m ripping pages out of my journal and flushing them down the toilet, I threw away books and deleted all the pictures off my camera that they hadn’t found yet. I come back out of the bathroom and the national security team is there.”

O

The national security team strip searched her. Just seconds earlier, she had considered hiding books under her shirt so they wouldn’t find them – including a book about North Korean propaganda and an illegal book about faith – which, in her words, are “not good things to have on you when you’re arrested” in China.

“God was just so faithful and I have no doubt that there were at least three dozen angels there that day helping,” she said. “Literally at the end of it, the director of the whole interrogation comes in and flashes his badge and then lists off all of the crimes that I committed against their country – which included being a threat to national security, trespassing on military property, like all these things – then he hands me my phone, makes me sign this thing, and he’s like, ‘You’re free to go.’ I got out of there as fast as I could.”

“

LAUREN FRANCO STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER Sutherland shows off her skateboarding skills.

Christ called us – go to every culture, every subculture, every industry. Infiltrate the marginalized, infiltrate the mainstream, there’s no place that’s excluded from that.”

SAMANTHA SUTHERLAND DEC. 2012 ALUMNA

T

he second time, she was arrested for a more blatant act of faith in North Korea. As part of a two-week tour of the country, her group visited a greenhouse with a guestbook to sign.

“I was the first one to sign the guestbook and I was like, well, I can’t just write my name because all these other people who have signed it have written poetry and drawn pictures,” Sutherland said. “I wrote ‘God bless’ and then my name.”

North Korea maintains control of their people through a system of report-

ing, Sutherland explained.

Civilians are trained to report suspicious activity – it’s how they keep everyone fearful. A woman working at the greenhouse reported Sutherland for writing those two simple words – ‘God bless’ – in the guestbook. “[One of the tour guides] told me like, ‘You need to say that your God is a superhero,’ and I was like, well that’s not good because I can’t say what he told me to say. I’m not going to be able to say anything that makes them happy,” she said. “When I got to the [immigration] office, I was just praying, ‘God, is this the day to evangelize to these officers? Because I’m definitely going to get sent out of the country then, but I’ve already told you I’ll go to prison for you.’”

The tour guide managed to talk to the officers so Sutherland wouldn’t have to – and they bought his story, so she was free to go. Once they made it back onto the bus, the rest of the group heaved a sigh of relief.

“All of my team members were so worried and were basically reprimanding me for writing ‘God bless’ in a book, as if I should be scared to mention my faith,” Sutherland said. “In their mind, they’re like, ‘Samantha messed up and we should all stop talking about God because that’s going to get us in trouble.’ But it’s the opposite, [North Korea is] so good at manipulation and creating fear in people that it was working on the tourists, too. But we don’t live under those rules, we live under the kingdom of heaven.”

These days, she’s not skateboarding around foreign streets anymore – she’s back in Abilene in what she describes as a season of waiting, as she tries to figure out what great thing God wants her to do next.

“I’ve dabbled in a lot of different things at this point and I know that there’s going to be some more trial and error before I figure out what I want to do and I think that’s fine...I’ve quit a lot of things, and I think that’s alright,” she laughed.

“It’s so easy to just accept a job out of desperation because we feel this anxiety that we have to do something great with our lives, but I think that it’s the wisest thing to wait and hear from God because God is usually never in a rush.”

Throughout her experiences over the past few years, Sutherland said the biggest thing she’s learned is the idea of being a missionary. She believes every Christian is called to be a missionary – just like it says in Acts.

“Being a missionary is this idea that we have this relationship with Christ and he is the greatest thing in our lives, He is the driving force behind everything that we do. And we want to share that truth with the world, so Christ called us – go to every culture, every subculture, every industry. Infiltrate the marginalized, infiltrate the mainstream, there’s no place that is excluded from that. Whether it’s a village in Nepal or the place where we grew up, there’s a purpose there and there are people who need to be reached.” aybe we could all learn something from Samantha Sutherland. Like, don’t carry propaganda books when you get arrested in China, and also to make it a point to preach the gospel in every aspect of your life – even to the ends of the earth.

M

AKB12A@ACU.EDU

6

S P O RT S FINAL STANDINGS

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

Picked to repeat, team looks to avoid complacency

BY MAX PRESTON ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR

The women’s basketball season begins next week, against the University of Missouri, as the women compete in the preseason WNIT for the first time ever.

The team is picked to repeat as Southland Conference champions in the coaches’ and media polls, and is the first ACU athletics program to do so since moving to Div. 1. But head coach Julie Goodenough believes there’s room to improve.

“I don’t think we can ever become complacent with where we are right now,” Goodenough said.

“Our mission statement for our program is ‘Godly women striving for excellence,’ and excellence is not about being the same

team this year as we were last year; that’s just being mediocre and being satisfied with status quo.”

Four returning starters were also selected to the preseason all-conference team, seniors Suzzy Dimba and Alexis Mason who made the first team, and seniors Lizzy Dimba and Sydney Shelstead, who made the second team.

“All four seniors making the preseason all-conference team is huge, but it all comes down to how we perform and how we handle ourselves this season,” Suzzy Dimba said. “We have to take this accolade and prove that we deserved it.”

Mason was named Southland Conference Player of the Year last year, when she put up 17.5 points per game as well as 73 total assists and 89

three pointers, leading her team in each category.

She was also named to the All-Academic Southland Conference first team.

Suzzy Dimba made the Second Team All-Southland Conference in the previous season as well as the All-Defensive Team.

She led the team defensively with 75 steals

“

ished fifth on the team in points with 232 total and third on the team with 180 total rebounds.

Shelstead was named to the All-Southland Conference third team and was also named to the CoSIDA Academic All-District first team.

She posted 14.1 points per games with 7.4 re-

Our mission statement for our program is ‘Godly women striving for excellence’, and excellence is not about being the same team this year as we were last year, that’s just being mediocre and being satisfied with status quo.”

JULIE GOODENOUGH HEAD WOMEN’S BASKETBALL COACH

and 56 blocks. She also put up the most rebounds on the team with 231.

Lizzy Dimba suffered an injury during the previous season but still fin-

bounds a game and also led the team with a total of 132 free throws made.

“Being named to the all-conference team is a really cool accolade, it is

cool that people view us to be the best,” said Mason. “I also understand that this is based on last years accomplishment so being a new year, we have to be ready to work hard and attack the contenders. The main goal that we have is to be a better version of ourselves and a better team than we were last year. We get a chance to represent ACU in the preseason WNIT and shock some people.

We want to of course make post season play, not only make it but be successful and win games.”

The women have a scheduled exhibition against McMurry in Moody Coliseum Monday before heading into the regular season.

MJP14B@ACU.EDU

One final farewell to Shotwell

BY JONATHAN RAITZ SPORTS EDITOR

LAUREN FRANCO STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER After serving for 57 years as the home for Wildcat football, Saturday’s matchup will be the final time ACU hosts an opponent in Shotwell.

pretty cool deal.”

Like every historic stadium Shotwell has a rich legacy, having been featured in the 2004 movie Friday Night Lights and playing host to several record-setting moments. Moments like when quarterback Jim Lindsey broke the Southland Conference passing record in 1970, and when running

back Wilbert Montgomery and kicker Ove Johansson each set national records on Homecoming in 1976.

Another historical moment was the 2008, second round playoff game against West Texas A&M, where the two teams combined for 161 points, and ACU racked up 810 yards of offense.

Collums, who was the offensive coordinator for that game, said he thought his offense might hit 100 points.

“That was just a crazy day.

That never happens,” Collums said. “It was a unique circumstance of having two really good teams with really good athletes. Everyone was winning their one on ones with both teams.”

Despite the struggles experienced by the 1-8 Wildcats this season, Saturday night will offer another opportunity to add to the legacy of Shotwell. Matching up evenly on paper with the 1-7 Demons, ACU will look to send the stadium and its seniors out with a win.

“They’re not coming out here to cash in their chips, they’re coming out here to win,” Collums said.

“They’ve won one game just like us, they’ve been in every game they’ve played. Offensively they’re pretty multiple. They use three quarterbacks, which you don’t see that all the time.”

NSU spoiled the Wildcats senior day in 2014 when they defeated ACU 34-10.

The Demons also downed the Wildcats 39-22 when the teams met in Louisiana last season. A win Saturday, would be the 178th in Shotwell’s history and move ACU ahead of Incarnate Word in the conference standings.

JMR13B@ACU.EDU

SOCCER

Roberts, Johnson earn top conference honors

BY MAX PRESTON ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR

In its final game of the season the soccer team clinched a third-place finish in the regular season Southland Conference standings with a win over Incarnate Word 2-1.

The women finished third last season as well and have posted a winning conference record in each of the last four seasons.

“My final season was nothing short of amazing,” said senior forward Natalie Throneberry. “Our team was something special this year.

The atmosphere we created within the team and program was something we’ve never had before, and I think that’s why we had one of our best years yet.”

The team began its regular season with eight non-conference games and struggled in most of them. They went a combined 1-6-1 while scoring ten total goals through the eight games.

The Wildcat’s first win came against Prairie View A&M, a dominant 5-0 performance in which Throneberry scored two goals in the game. Their tie was in the second game of the season against UTEP, as the teams

Team

Div. Ovrl.

10-0-1 UCA 9-2 SFA 8-2-1 ACU 7-3-1 NWSU 5-5-1 HBU McNeese 4-6-1 4-6-1 SELU Nicholls 3-6-2 3-7-1 UIW TAMU-CC 3-7-1 2-8-1 SHSU 1-7-3 Lamar

14-3-1 11-4 10-6-1 8-8-2 8-8-1 6-10-1 6-7-2 6-10-2 4-10-2 3-13-1 2-15-1 1-14-3

Volleyball Team

TAMU-CC SFA HBU ACU SHSU NWSU UCA Lamar UIW McNeese SELU Nicholls UNO

Div. Ovrl.

12-0 9-2 8-5 7-5 6-5 7-6 6-7 6-7 5-7 5-7 5-8 3-9 1-12

17-7 16-8 17-12 8-19 12-12 12-16 12-13 6-19 9-16 9-18 6-20 8-20 4-22

Football

FOOTBALL

Fifty-seven years ago, ACU earned a 13-12 victory over Trinity in its first-ever game at Shotwell Stadium. Now, 290 games later the Wildcats prepare to take the field at Shotwell one final time, against Northwestern State.

Since 1959, when Shotwell first opened, the Wildcats have posted a .627 winning percentage and six unbeaten seasons at home, the most recent coming in 2013. It has also been home to two national championship teams in 1973 and 1977.

Head coach Ken Collums has been apart of a fair share of the 57 seasons at Shotwell, serving as the head football coach for past five years.

“There have been a lot of great games played there, high school, college, even just for me personally. Everybody has got their own little memories and stories of Shotwell Stadium,” Collums said. “The good thing is you say goodbye to Shotwell, you walk into a new stadium on campus, it’s a

Soccer

MAGGIE FARIAS STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER Since becoming Div. 1 in 2013, soccer has finished with a winning conference record each of the transitional years, recording one less loss each year.

battled to a scoreless draw after overtime.

Conference play began against Texas A&M Corpus Christi, which the ACU won by a score of 4-0.

The women would then put together a three-game winning streak after beating Nicholls State and Southeastern Louisiana before going on a tough weekend road trip.

The Wildcats had to travel to Louisiana on Sept. 30 to face Northwestern State, where they lost 2-1, and then had to go to Arkansas on Oct. 2, which ended in another 0-0 tie against Central Arkansas.

First place was still not out of reach, however, as the women went on another

three-game winning streak against Houston Baptist, Lamar and McNeese State.

This put them in third, ahead of a tough game against second place Stephen F. Austin, which aired on ESPN 3.

After 71 minutes of play the teams were neck and neck at a 2-2 score with goals from Throneberry and freshman defender Shay Johnson.

However, SFA would score a late tiebreaker goal at the 82nd minute to win the game 3-2.

The Wildcats slipped down to fourth place with two conference games left in the season, but finished off the weekend with a 2-0 win against Sam Houston State.

Heading into their final match against Incarnate Word Friday, the women had a chance to finish second with a win and losses by Northwestern State and SFA. They took the third place finish though, as they beat Incarnate Word 2-1, and Northwestern lost to conference champions Central Arkansas.

“One key moment I remember and will carry out through the rest of my time at ACU is even when we are behind in a game, we strive to get back into the game using every chance we can get,” said freshman forward Samantha Vestal. “We worked until the last seconds of the game to come out on top.”

Statistically, Johnson led the team in goals with five, despite having to miss part of the season with an ankle injury. For her performance, Johnson earned Southland Conference Freshman of the Year honors.

“My first season of collegiate soccer went so far beyond my expectations, and this team was the reason for it,” said Johnson. “This group was the closest team I’ve ever been a part of, and that chemistry really helped us on the field this season too.”

Junior midfielder Chloe Fifer had an impressive season in the assists column as she led the team with eight, and also led in the Southland Conference for part of the season.

Seniors Throneberry and Kelsie Roberts were productive in their final seasons, as Throneberry posted four goals and five assists while Roberts, who had not scored in her other three seasons, put up four goals along with an assist. Roberts was also selected as the Southland’s Defender of the Year.

Senior goalkeeper Sydney Newton closed her final season with a 7-5-2 record and posted 75 saves with six shoutouts.

Other Wildcats recognized were Fifer, who earned second team all-Conference honors, and Throneberry and Newton as honorable mention all-Conference selections.

ACU improved its 2015 conference record of 7-2-2 to a 2016 conference record of 8-2-1, along with earning its first winning overall soccer record since moving to Div. 1 at 9-8-2.

MJP14B@ACU.EDU

Team

SHSU UCA Nicholls SELU McNeese SFA Lamar HBU UIW ACU NWSU

Div. Ovrl.

6-0 6-0 4-2 4-2 4-3 3-3 3-3 2-4 1-5 1-6 0-6

8-0 7-1 4-4 4-4 5-4 4-4 3-5 3-5 1-7 1-8 1-7

EX-FACTOR Former Wildcat Taylor Gabriel hauled in a 55-yd touchdown in a against the Packers on Sunday. It was his first career touchdown as an Atlanta Falcon.

After replacing Spencer Ware, who left the game with an injury, Charcandrick West rushed 14 times for 52 yards and caught two passes. West’s production helped the Kansas City Chiefs to a 30-14 win over the Colts.

Conference

BRIEFINGS The men’s and women’s cross country teams each posted ninth place finishes at the Southland Conference Championships last weekend.

Golf finished the fall portion of its schedule with an 18th place finish in South Carolina. The team begins spring play February 13th.

UPCOMING Men’s and Women’s basketball begin the non-conference portion of their schedules Nov. 11.

The men will host Schreiner University, while the women will head to Missouri in the first round of the preseason WNIT. At fourth in the Southland Conference, volleyball could move as high as second in the standings. The Wildcats finish out their schedule with three home games, starting Saturday at 1p.m.