On March 17, 1965, students Paul Cobb, Will Battles, Fernando Canales and Milton Hare crammed into a two-seater car to drive 2,300 miles from Oakland, Calif., to Selma, Ala. The objective was to join the third attempt at a march for voting rights. It was a risk — not only did the Seventh-day Adventist Church, at the time, shun the notion of political activism, but bloodshed during the second Selma to Montgomery march served as an ominous reminder of what might await.

In the face of physical and verbal threats, the men, three of whom were Pacific Union College students, moved forward in hopes that by doing so the nation would move forward also.

Bill Knott, editor of the Adventist Review, shared this little-known story at PUC’s annual Martin Luther King Jr. program on Jan. 10. Knott was joined by Hare. Hare, who attended PUC, received a standing ovation from the audience, which packed the sanctuary.

Knott and Hare told the story of how the four men arrived in Selma on March 21, 1965, joining Martin Luther King Jr. and 3,200 marchers. By the time they reached Montgomery, the number had grown to 25,000. Three weeks after the historic march, church leaders at the General Conference Spring Council voted to issue a recommendation for the desegregation of churches, schools and other Adventist institutions. In August, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

Knott, who wrote an article about the PUC students in the Review, expressed disappointment at the obscurity of such stories. “What troubled me about this story is that it took me 40 years to hear it,” said Knott. “Unless we tell the stories of the people who are standing on the front lines, doing the hard work, committed to the justice that God calls us to implement on society — unless we tell those stories now, it will be another generation before broken things get fixed.”

Knott added, “I want to encourage you as you think of the meaning of Dr. King’s life. As you think about the connections between where you sit and events that happened 40 years ago, I want you to think about the fact that it is your Adventist faith that calls you to involvement in your society… It’s part of the vision of being a biblically grounded and socially conscious Adventist in the 20th century.”

The moving program also included an apology by the college administration for past racial inequities. “Today we officially apologize to the many African-American students and [those of] other ethnic groups who have attended PUC for our actions which hurt these students, either overtly, officially, or more subtly, and pledge that we will continue in our efforts to make sure that we model the values of an inclusive community,” said President Richard Osborn.

Osborn’s statement refers to past policies prohibiting interracial dating and dorm assignments, and the relegation of minority students to menial campus jobs, among other prejudices once endorsed at PUC. He said, “Our apology will mean we will become even more intentional in our effort to make this a true community based on equality composed of the beautiful rainbow of students and employees we will see in Heaven.”