In a combined effort between the leadership of Mid-America Christian University and the captains of the men’s basketball team, MACU implemented a new pregame ceremony at every home game inside the Gaulke Activity Center during the 2020-21 regular season.
In an effort to help spur social change and address the nation’s racial divide, a member of the MACU men’s basketball team performed a poem or read an excerpt during the pregame ceremony to provide a personal perspective on current social matters and used their platform to share the teachings of Jesus Christ to help bridge the current racial divide.
“I am really proud of our young men, the platform they helped create and the way they used it. We talk all the time that basketball is important, but it is not the most important thing.,” said Head Coach Josh Gamblin. “Our players are speaking about things that they have been personally affected by. They have been using their platform as an opportunity to step out of their comfort zone to speak about social change and racial inequality.”
Following the reading, another member of the MACU men’s basketball team would lead a moment of silence to honor those victimized by hatred and bigotry.
“On the subject of change, I come to you all today to express something that is continuously on my heart. Equality is not something that should be an argument.
Dom Ford, Senior
And I don’t come to you today as a Black Lives Matter activist, but I do come to you as a child of God. And the scripture says in Mark 12: 30-31: ‘Love the Lord
your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’
The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.’
So I would say to this, let’s try our best to live out our lives in the way God has called us to. Then we can begin to realize what’s really important and continue
to impact real change for God’s kingdom.”