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The Samford Crimson
Volume 103, Issue 21
School
of the Arts
presents
annual
art show
News, 2
Serving Samford University Since 1915
April 19. 201S
Samford hosts independent TED talk
WILLIAM MARLOW
News Editor
Samford University hosted
a independent TED talk on
Thursday April 12, 2018.
Andy Christiansen, Taylor Robinson,
Wendy Shuffett, Anne Riley, Nicole
Pinkham and Luke Demarco spoke. The
speakers discussed discovering purpose
by embracing new perspectives.
For the past 10 years, author
Anne Riley said she searched for
purpose. As a Spanish teacher, she
thought it was teaching. However,
her responsibilities soon included
comforting students. Many endured
divorce and abusive relationships.
“I was getting out of bed everyday
because of the students,” she said.
As students confided in
her, she listened. All the time,
she said she felt helpless.
In 2013, Riley said her purpose
crystallized after her friend’s first
daughter was diagnosed with a
incurable and fatal genetic brain disease.
Besides being deadly, it was
also unbeatable, and the girl
experienced constant seizures.
Then, their third daughter was also
diagnosed with the same disease. Once
again, Riley said she felt helpless.
Following the diagnoses, she
seeked God for comfort. While
in church she said God inspired
her to share the girls’ stories.
Therefore, Riley and her cousin wrote
the children’s book “Voyage to the Star
Kingdom.” With every completed page,
Riley cried. She said it’s about a storm
that batters only one family’s home.
“I realized once again my
occupation was being used as vehicle
for my greater purpose,” she said.
Although, she said, people now
utilize their talents only for jobs.
“The occupation itself isn’t
the point, but rather a way
to fulfill a purpose,” she said.
Luke Demarco also struggled
discovering his purpose.
As a child, Demarco said he struggled
seeing due to his nearsightedness.
His vision was so blurry, Demarco
felt like he was underwater. His
parents finally purchased glasses.
OF WILLIAM MARLOW
Even though he could now see,
Demarco said his privilege still
shielded him from others’ pain.
As achild , Demarco said he never knew
hunger. His mother angered him when
she forced Demarco to finish his food.
He first saw hunger at age 6 while
in San Francisco. As Demarco handed
out burgers during Christmas, he
saw a man eating from the garbage.
“I gave him a burger and he
said, ‘God bless you.’ That was
the first time that sentence
meant something to me,” he said.
However, Demarco said his color¬
blind prejudices still prevented him
from seeing injustice. Due to being a
white upper-middle-class American,
Demarco said he nevers fears for his
life when pulled over by the police.
Consequently, he branded racial
protesters as whiners. Demarco said
he then realized he surrounded himself
with people that think and look like him.
“I clinged to my perspectives
only to realize I was wearing the
wrong prescription the whole time.
Our vision becomes piercingly
nearsighted. Sometimes our
lives need eye exams,” he said.
In high school, Demarco said he
began feeling guilty about his skin color.
“I was fighting wars under my skin
and the only weapon I had to keep
people from peering into the trenches
of my brokeness was a fake smile
and die sentence I’m fine,” he said.
However, Demarco said
he then embraced Jesus
Christ and now serves others.
“I finally found hands that
could hold my heart even though
his palms were pierced,” he said.
While Demarco looked outward,
Wendy Shuffett said she discovered
her purpose locally. She’s a professor
at Jefferson State Community College.
Shuffett said she first encountered
Alabama’s human trafficking a
year-and-a-half ago through her
student. The student feared her
friend was being sex trafficked.
Before this, Shuffett said she viewed
trafficking as a distance issue. It
happens in Bulgaria where Shuffett
said traffickers kidnap approximately
10,000 girls a year. Most are under
12. It happens in India where she said
18 million slaves currently reside.
In the U.S., Shuffett said I-20 serves as
America’s sex trafficking superhighway,
and most victims eventually pass
through Homewood’s Oxmoor Road.
Due to these experiences, she joined
the Set Free Movement, which builds
homes for groups traffickers target such
as girls and orphans. She also educates
students about Alabama’s human
trafficking and buys fair-trade products
which aren’t produced with slaves.
Three weeks ago, a Shelby County
woman called her asking for the signs
of human trafficking. The woman
believed her friend was being trafficked.
Shuffett said she’s now prepared.
“The end of slavery begins with us.
we’re the ones that can bring about that
change, healing, and freedom,” she said.
Sigma Nu President speaks out: fraternity in 'receivership status’
DANIEL DODSON
News Writer
Samford’s Sigma Nu fraternity
has been moved into a receivership
status according to chapter President
Matthew Holland. This means the
organization will have an alumni
board with direct supervision of the
fraternity and they will lose designated
housing for the next year. In addition,
the fraternity’s national office and
the Samford administration will have
some oversight of the organization.
According to Holland, the fraternity
has failed to live up to Samford’s
values over the past few years.
“It is expected that the Chapter will
earn the right to restore the designated
housing for the 2019-20 academic year
should the fraternity be successful in
restoring the fraternity to good standing
with the University,” Holland said.
The fraternity will continue
operations as any other organization on
campus while in the receivership status.
Rumors previously spread before
that the university had suspended
Sigma Nu for two years, but those
rumors have been proven false.
“SigmaNuatSamfordgenerallyhasnot
lived up to its own creed, nor the values
required by the University. However,
the chapter is committed to reform and
restoring itself into good standing with
The Iota chapter of Sigma Nu was
founded in 1879 at Howard College
and would later be the first fraternity
to build a house on Samford’s campus
when the school moved to Homewood.
The current Sigma Nu house located in
West Campus, and was built in 1990,
according to the organization’s website.
“I think you will see a notable
difference in this chapter over the
next year. Living up to our creed and
upholding Samford’s values in a way
that we have not recently,” Holland said.
The Office of Greek Life
declined to comment for this
stoiy due to greek organize tio n
proceedings being confidential.
theSamford Community,” Holland said.
Samford University Library
