Hello, friends!
I don't know what's happened to Demitrius or Wingo in the past 17+ years since I graduated from WashU (#GoBears). What I do know is that while I was a student, Wingo would also put a few extra fries on the plate to go with my double cheeseburger (Swiss cheese, in case you were wondering) and that Demitrius would always refer to everyone as "young man" or "young lady" when taking their order. They worked at Bear's Den, the food spot visited by every student who lived on the South 40. They, along with the rest of the mostly Black food workers at Bear's Den were kind, courteous, funny, and really good at their jobs. I never had a super long conversation with any of them (they had to get through the line of students as quickly as they could) but I liked them and seeing them behind the counter at Bear's Den was a constant throughout my 4 years there.
A few weeks back, there was an incident at Bear's Den. According to those present, eggs and racial slurs were thrown in the direction of Bear's Den employees, allegedly as part of a Greek Pledge Week event. One Fraternity and one Sorority have been suspended while an investigation takes place.
When I heard about what went down, a few things went through my head. First, I felt sad for my alma mater. Y'all know that I have as much school pride as anyone, so to see WashU in the news for something like this was not ideal. (I also had to question my school loyalty, seeing as how I wasn't even aware of what went down, but that's a different thing). I was brought back to my old stereotypes that I'd believed about Greek life before and during my time in college. (Thankfully, seeing how Greek InterVarsity operates has disabused me of that notion.)
Mostly though, I thought about Demitrius and Wingo and the rest of the workers I encountered at Bear's Den. They don't deserve to feel unsafe at work. They don't need the added stress of wondering if they are going to be assaulted, verbally or otherwise, while they are trying to serve students. They deserve to be treated with with respect and dignity, just like anyone who is made in God's image. I doubt that Demitrius and Wingo still work at Bear's Den but whoever is there now still deserves better.
The one thing I haven't figured out yet is whether or not there's anything I need to do beyond just feeling sad from afar. I don't live in St. Louis anymore. I'm not the staff at WashU or have direct access to students like I did before. I don't think that WashU losing my meager contributions would have a whole lot of impact. It's not that I'm stuck; it's more that there isn't much to do.
So, I'm going to pray. I'm going to pray from my alma mater. I'm going to pray for the students who allegedly perpetrated these acts. I'm going to pray for the Greek system at WashU, which probably has some things to work out. I'm going to pray for the InterVarsity students at WashU too. I'm going to pray for Demitrius, Wingo, and all the workers at Bear's Den, past and present; that they may know that they are seen and loved by God.
#GoBears
~Adam
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