Harding College's Long Struggle With Race

The Bison noted that "there are now a few isolated instances where some students are entering colleges and universities where they had been traditionally prohibited because of the racial group to which they belong" - likely referring to recent admissions of black students to the University of Arkansas law school. According to Benson, this principle proved applicable to black and white people as well. After documenting key points in the history of race relations from the antebellum era to the civil rights legislation of 1964 and 1965, and stating that the Voting Rights Act of 1965 "seemed to be the final answer" in efforts "to do away entirely with all racial barriers before the law," this article turned its attention to a collection of problems that exacerbated racial tensions. With the help of the head of the psychology department, Dr. Bob Gilliam, the Student Association sponsored the event on consecutive Wednesday nights, as a panel of black students took the stage to voice their feelings of animosity and distrust toward Harding.