Archive post #4 A.B.L.E. Demands

This photo is from one of the A.BL.E. boxes in the special archives room. In 1969, A.B.L.E. students presented a list of demands to the college administration, their goal was to make Knox a better place for black students. They felt these were crucial to make Knox a more welcoming environment for their Black student population. A particular line stood out to me, “Our suggestions and demands should be followed despite the opposing views of our white colleagues.” It hurts to think about how isolated they must have felt, how alone they were in this fight when all they wanted was better than the bare minimum. Oftentimes when oppressed groups are demanding better treatment, they are gaslit by the oppressors around them into thinking they are overreacting. They are told it isn’t as bad as they are making it out to be. In the tone of these demands and intro, it seems like their last resort. The delivery of “ABLE has taken the problem in its own hands.” only emphasizes this. This also reminded me of MLK’s “A Letter from Birmingham Jail.” specifically the excerpt, “When you are harried by day and haunted by night by the fact that you are a Negro, living constantly at tiptoe stance, never knowing what to expect next, and plagued with inner fears and outer resentments; when you are forever fighting a degenerating sense of “nobodyness” — then you will understand why we find it difficult to wait.” It gives a sense of urgency, that they are tired of waiting and now much demand or change will not be made.