{"id":29793,"date":"2024-01-26T15:25:55","date_gmt":"2024-01-26T20:25:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.furman.edu\/news\/?p=29793"},"modified":"2024-01-30T09:27:59","modified_gmt":"2024-01-30T14:27:59","slug":"joseph-vaughn-day-2024","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.furman.edu\/news\/joseph-vaughn-day-2024\/","title":{"rendered":"Joseph Vaughn Day calls Furman community to \u2018be part of the journey\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

Remarks by Furman President Elizabeth Davis >><\/a>
\nRemarks by Student Diversity Council President Abijah Leamon \u2019<\/span><\/i>24 >><\/a><\/h4>\n

Plans for the traditional Walk of Honor from Daniel Chapel across Furman Mall to the steps of the James B. Duke Library in the early afternoon of Jan. 26, 2024, had to change due to the threat of gloomy weather overhead. <\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"

Marcus Tate \u201912, a relative of Joseph Vaughn, lights a candle in honor of Vaughn during the Joseph Vaughn Day Commemoration at Daniel Chapel on Friday, Jan. 26, 2024.<\/p><\/div>\n

But even though the annual commemoration of Joseph Vaughn Day was relocated indoors to Daniel Chapel, the legacy of Joseph Allen Vaughn \u201968, Furman\u2019s first Black undergraduate student, \u201cshines a light no weather could dampen,\u201d said Furman President Elizabeth Davis.<\/span><\/p>\n

The light became literal in the chapel during a moment of silence, as Marcus Tate \u201912, a member of the Vaughn family, lit a memorial candle for his cousin.<\/span><\/p>\n

Joseph Vaughn Day<\/span><\/a>, which arose from the \u201cSeeking Abraham\u201d report by Furman\u2019s <\/span>Task Force on Slavery and Justice<\/span><\/a>, celebrates the anniversary of Vaughn\u2019s enrollment on Jan. 29, 1965. Weather permitting, the ceremony traditionally takes place at Joseph Vaughn Plaza, which was completed in April 2021 and features a statue recreating a photo of Vaughn climbing the library steps in 1965.<\/span><\/p>\n

Vaughn\u2019s legacy compels the Furman community to \u201cstand tall and defiant\u201d against the forces in society that are attempting to deny historical truth and dismiss the language of <\/span>diversity, equity and inclusion<\/span><\/a> as \u201cwoke,\u201d Teresa Cosby, a professor of politics and international affairs and chair of Furman\u2019s <\/span>Black Faculty and Staff Association<\/span><\/a>, told the hundreds in attendance in Daniel Chapel.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The phrase \u201cstay woke\u201d originated decades ago as a warning among Black people against the dangers of white racism, Cosby explained.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThey cannot have this word,\u201d she said.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2018Part of the journey\u2019<\/b><\/h3>\n

This year\u2019s observance introduced a new Joseph Vaughn Day tradition: the awarding of the first Idella Goodson Glenn Outstanding Black Alumni Award. The award \u201chonors exceptional individuals who have demonstrated remarkable achievements and exemplary leadership while making significant contributions to their fields and communities,\u201d said Adrienne Johnson <\/span>\u2019<\/span><\/i>10, an attorney, educator and advocate in Decatur, Georgia, and vice president of the <\/span>Black Alumni Council<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"

Idella Glenn \u201984 wipes away a tear while speaking during the Joseph Vaughn Day Commemoration at Daniel Chapel on Friday, Jan. 26, 2024.<\/p><\/div>\n

Johnson praised her former mentor Glenn, a 1984 graduate of Furman who worked at the school for 18 years as director of multicultural affairs, assistant vice president for student development and director of diversity and inclusion, as \u201ca true champion of campus belonging.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Glenn, now the vice president for equity, inclusion and community impact at the University of Southern Maine, was on hand to present the award named in her honor to Erica Ramsey \u201907<\/a>, the first president of the Black Alumni Council.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cTalk about full circle,\u201d said Glenn, her voice full of emotion. \u201cPerhaps we\u2019re getting closer to the day that Martin Luther King Jr. envisioned when the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slaveholders could sit down together at the table of brotherhood.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI am standing here because I have passion,\u201d said Ramsey after embracing Glenn and receiving the award. \u201cEveryone here has the same opportunity if you have passion. You, too, can be a part of the journey.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

As the first recipient of Furman\u2019s first award honoring distinguished Black alumni, Johnson, owner of a public relations firm in Greenville, South Carolina, expressed the hope that there soon would be \u201cso many people in line that they\u2019ll have to make another.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2018Someday we\u2019ll all be free\u2019<\/b><\/h3>\n

Abijah Leamon <\/span>\u2019<\/span><\/i>24, the president of Furman\u2019s <\/span>Student Diversity Council<\/span><\/a> and a peer mentor in the <\/span>Pathways Program<\/span><\/a>, concluded the ceremony with a call to action.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"

Abijah Leamon \u201924 speaks during the Joseph Vaughn Day Commemoration at Daniel Chapel on Friday, Jan. 26, 2024.<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201cI call you all to continue to fight for what is right, educate yourself on what you aren\u2019t familiar with, and advocate for others even when it gets challenging,\u201d said Leamon, a double major in politics and international affairs and Africana studies. \u201cI challenge you to use Joseph Vaughn\u2019s legacy to motivate you and guide you in deciding how you will commit to your community. Change will not come if we stop moving.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Before the audience filed out of Daniel Chapel under brightened afternoon skies, Leamon closed by reciting the final verse of a soul classic recorded by Donny Hathaway just a few years after Joseph Vaughn graduated from Furman:<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cKeep on walking tall, hold your head up high \u2026 Sing your greatest song, and you\u2019ll keep going on. Take it from me \u2013 someday we\u2019ll all be free.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The life and legacy of Joseph Vaughn \u201968, Furman\u2019s first Black undergraduate student, are a challenge to commit to the community, said speakers at this year\u2019s celebration.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":265,"featured_media":29820,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[99,3,70,32],"tags":[229],"class_list":["post-29793","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-africana-studies","category-alumni","category-diversity-equity-and-inclusion","category-politics-and-international-affairs","tag-joseph-vaughn-day"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.furman.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29793","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.furman.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.furman.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.furman.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/265"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.furman.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=29793"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.furman.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29793\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.furman.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/29820"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.furman.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=29793"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.furman.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=29793"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.furman.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=29793"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}