Unity in Diversity, Diversity in Unity (VIDEO)

Last fall, dozens of Westminster College faculty, staff and students came together and organized a Rally for Peace event on our campus. The rally was in response to hateful acts being committed on college campuses across the nation. Faculty, staff and students gathered at the Columns to send a message that was loud and resounding. It was courageous and clear. Hate has no home at Westminster College.

It is with great pride that I lead this community that learns together, lives together, gives service together, and leads together. Our actions personify the past, the present, and the future of this great institution. We are the living history of Westminster College and our actions define who we are as a community. At times, we might choose to respectfully disagree, yet we are bound together by our shared values of integrity, fairness, respect, and responsibility.

Through our alumni, we are bound together through generations. Through our outreach and partners, we are bound together with our communities. Through our deeds, we are bound together with society. Through our donors and friends, we are bound together with our future.

At Westminster, we come together from every corner of the world and unite as seekers of wisdom. We do not need hateful rhetoric. We do not need discrimination. We do not need exclusion of any kind. We need peace. Peace is the ultimate weapon. And peace will accomplish things that hate never will. Yet as Eleanor Roosevelt once said, “Peace will not be built by people with bitterness in their hearts.”

As we continue our quest to prepare our students to lead with audacity and resiliency, I ask that you look inside your hearts. If you see rough edges, strive to soften them. It is my hope that together as a campus community, we unite and seek freedom from fear of violence and disrespect for all of our community members. Let us seek unity in diversity and diversity in unity. Let us seek to create the future we envision for ourselves and for our world.

Benjamin Akande, President