A group of traveling preachers brought their inflammatory brand of hateful “confrontational evangelizing” to campus this week, attacking everyone from Mormons to gays to – get this – sports fans. Apparently, a good majority of University students are going straight to hell for idolizing the Ducks too much every fall.
These preachers, like everyone with a point to make, deserved space in the EMU Amphitheater to do it. But instead of ignoring these clearly wacky firebrands, students decided to yell back. This action was understandable considering the extremely offensive nature of many of the preachers’ remarks about students. However, ignoring them would have more quickly caused them to depart.
To show the height of this controversy, the Emerald on Thursday published a photo of student Cree Gordon holding a sign in the amphitheater while one preacher bellowed at a large crowd. It was meant as a follow-up to a story on Wednesday about the preachers to show the continued debate in the Heart of Campus. The photo caption included graphic language about Gordon’s sexual endeavors as a gay man that some readers may have found offensive. Some might say the language was gratuitous, but we believe this language, which was displayed for hundreds to see, was necessary to show an example of how students were affected by the preachers.
And remember, students: Watch out for your immortal soul the next time you enjoy watching a Duck cross the goal line. That may be you crossing the line into eternal damnation.