Carthage kicks off Red Bracelet Project as part of the College’s anti-racism commitment
Carthage is challenging its community to demonstrate solidarity against racism with a new semester-long program, the Red Bracelet Project.
The Red Bracelet Project invites students, staff, and faculty are invited to participate in a number of events that are aimed at educating and inspiring action against racism and inequality within our communities. To show a physical sign of unity, red bracelets from Pura Vida (Pure Life) will be available to all participants. These bracelets symbolize the fight for justice, a mission to create a world where all people can flourish, and that it takes a community to put its collective dreams and hard work together to make its goals a reality. In short, the bracelets symbolize a commitment to anti-racism at Carthage and in the world.
Red bracelets can be picked up at the Center for Faith and Spirituality in the A. F. Siebert Chapel, The Aspire Center in Lentz Hall, and the Division of Student Affairs Office in the Todd Wehr Center. They will also be handed out during Red Bracelet Project events throughout the spring semester. Students can track their attendance of any Red Bracelet Project event on The Harbor and participants can earn a special t-shirt by attending three or more Red Bracelet Project events.
“The Red Bracelet Project asks the Carthage community to show a commitment to this work not only by wearing the bracelet but also by engaging in events and living Carthage’s anti-racism plan,” said campus pastor Kara Baylor. “The quote ‘African slaves and their descendants found woven in the text of the Bible a crimson thread of divine justice antithetical to the injustice they had come to know all too well,’ inspired the Red Bracelet Project.”
The Red Bracelet Project is one way the community is emulating President Swallow’s Anti-Racism Plan, which commits to close the achievement gap between graduation rates, expand resources for work in diversity, equity, and inclusion, and to infuse the teaching of U.S. racial history throughout Carthage’s curriculum.
