When Denise Brown found out that her sister Nicole Brown Simpson was murdered on June 12, 1994, she was devastated and confused.

“I had lost my best friend,” Brown said. “My sister Nicole, who I had been extremely close to my whole life, was dead. I also was the first to say that she wasn’t a battered woman, but I didn’t know everything that she was keeping from me.”

However, Brown decided to take an active role in the prevention of domestic abuse after her sister’s death.

“I looked at her diary and I was shocked at what she’d been hiding,” Brown said. “There was a cycle of violence involved with her relationship that I didn’t know existed – we hadn’t been raised in an environment like that. Unfortunately, it took my sister’s life ending to wake me up to domestic abuse.”

Services Offering Safety (SOS), the local domestic abuse prevention and education group, hosted Brown and Emporia High School Thespians’ production of “dont u luv me?” at the Granada theatre Monday night.

“I thought it was a great presentation and it’s great that (Brown) is spreading the word about domestic abuse,” said Jessica Fleming, freshman criminal justice and sociology major. “I have been in an abusive relationship and this sort of presentation needs to be done more often. I wish it’d been there for me.”

The presentation began with the Emporia High School Thespian’s performance of “dont u luv me?” which portrayed an abusive high school relationship. The play utilized modern text messaging, language and cyber stalking to demonstrate what an abusive high school relationship may look like.

“I thought the play was fantastic,” said Cody Pritchard, junior math secondary education major. “It’s modern and that kind of thing happens every day. The young people watching may not have known what abuse looked like.”

After the play, Brown began her presentation on the necessity of strong community bonds and communication to prevent domestic abuse. Her sister’s story was an example of poor communication about domestic abuse, Brown said.

“It takes a lot of courage for someone to be willing to talk to you about domestic abuse,” Brown said. “If you make the call on their behalf you may be saving their life, and I wish I got to talk to my sister about what was happening to her.”

Brown also praised SOS and its program for being more proactive about domestic abuse than many programs around the nation.

“You guys do some really impressive work in Kansas,” Brown said. “I am really impressed, and I hope that other counties or states will follow your lead.”

Brown also mentioned the transfer of Domestic Abuse Awareness Month from October to May.

Brown concluded her presentation by explaining her view on the necessity of involving every member of society in the process of ending domestic violence. Brown put a particular emphasis on young men and boys.

“I love the ‘Hands Are Not For Hurting’ program that many schools have instituted,” Brown said. “My nephew still remembers learning the program as a child, and he’s a man now.”

A key point of Brown’s lecture was the importance of getting men in positions of power to encourage better legislation for Domestic Abuse victims and abusers.

“I agree with her that that’s the key,” said Joel Wilburn, junior secondary education major. “Men still have a lot of authority in some positions, and they need to help out just as much as women do.”

Brown’s final statements encouraged involvement by all members of a community.

“Get involved before it’s too late,” Brown said. “Get involved before it happens to your family, or get involved before it happens to someone that you love. Let’s not let evil prevail. We must meet the challenge of doing what’s right every day.”

Josh Johnson/The Bulletin

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Thomas Field and the rest on the Trusler Sports Complaex will be shared with the EHS baseball team for the rest of the season. The decision will benefit both ESU and EHS by reducing costs of maintaining their own facilities with their funds alone./PHOTO BY KELLEN JENKINS

The Emporia State athletics department and Emporia High School athletics have recently agreed to share the Trusler Complex.

According to ESU Athletic Director Kent Weiser, both schools have had a history of the cooperative use of each other’s facilities.

“Emporia State and Emporia High have always had a very solid and strong relationship with our athletic programs as far as sharing facilities,” Weiser said.

For several years, EHS has used ESU’s facilities.

“Emporia High School uses Welch Stadium for their football and track meets,” Weiser said. “They were a major part of helping fund the artificial surface on Jones Field.”

Although both schools are cooperative, the use of all facilities is not free for EHS.

“They pay the hard costs like electricity bills and upkeep,” Weiser said. “As far as their use of the Trusler Complex, there are really no extra expenses for ESU because we will have our maintenance staff mow the grass, which they do anyway. Emporia High school is responsible for all of the other field maintenance.”

According to Weiser, Emporia High is responsible for using dry agents on the infield, striping the infield and providing their own bases.

Britton Hart, athletic director for Emporia High, said the use of the facilities will be a great improvement from the school’s previous arrangements.

“It is a great deal for them because it is a much nicer facility than using Whittier Park because it was not as nice for fans or student athletes in comparison to Trusler,” Hart said.

Although both schools have a good rapport with each other, scheduling conflicts will always be an issue.

“The only conflict we have this year is when they have a contest we will only have one field to practice on, which really is not bad because we have a couple batting cages, a couple pitching mounds and a large outfield,” Hart said.

EHS is not the only school that will benefit from these arrangements. According to Weiser, EHS also allows ESU’s tennis team to use their courts.

“The high school has been terrific with letting us use their tennis courts,” Weiser said. “They have got a great tennis complex with 12 courts and when we have dual meets with both men and women it allows us to go to a quality facility and play all the matches at once.”

According to ESU tennis player Andrew Shipp, the larger facility is a necessity when it comes to hosting matches.

“It is mostly for matches where we need more courts than our courts supply,” Shipp said.

Weiser said he feels the alliance is good for the community.

“We share facilities with the city of Emporia, Emporia High School and Emporia State,” Weiser said. “We can each end up with a very nice facility and share rather than each having smaller facilities.”

Doug Irby/The Bulletin

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Beth Wegemer, freshman sociology and psychology major, and Ashley Williams, freshman history major, hold signs in counter-protest against Westboro Baptist Church picketers Monday afternoon at Flint Hills Technical College, across the street from Emporia High School. Wegemer and Williams were two of nearly 100 counter-protesters that gathered in opposition of WBC members, who preach against homosexuality./PHOTO BY KELLEN JENKINS

Members of P.R.I.D.E. protested alongside other Emporia State and Emporia High School students Monday afternoon against picketing held by Fred Phelps’ Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka outside of Emporia High School.

“With the appearance of the anti-Christ, that is the beast Obama, in the White House, the time is so very short,” said Shirley Phelps-Roper, daughter of Fred Phelps, Westboro Baptist Church attorney and member. “The Lord is coming, America is doomed and they have only one course of action that will do at this hour. (They must) put away their idols, put away their false gods and put away their filthy manner of life and obey their God.”

Approximately 15 members of the WBC attended to protest and about 100 students counter protested. Members of WBC were protesting in Emporia in reaction to a being “put on trial for trumped up charges brought by a criminal D.A.,” their Web site said.

WBC members said that they speak out primarily against homosexuals and consider them to be evil.

“What they were doing was they were down here, picketing the high school to educate ‘our little brats’,” said Luke Wolford, sophomore sociology major and president of P.R.I.D.E. “We came out here because it’s only fair that they hear both sides. The goal of P.R.I.D.E. is to promote respect, to promote diversity and not to have that kind of hate, that kind of discrimination.”

But WBC members said they do not consider their picketing hateful or discrimination – they said they consider what they do to be loving.

“You call it picketing because that’s just the vernacular that’s used in this generation,” Phelps-Roper said. “But really what it is, is the preaching moment. We do it so we can warn this generation, so we can fulfill the royal law in James 2:8 and that is to love your neighbor as yourself.”

The counter protest open not only to members of the homosexual community, but to all those who support the cause.

“Even though I’m not gay, I have gay friends and I think everybody should coexist,” said Kris Benitez, freshman math major. “I see no reason why I should have to push my beliefs on other people or why other people should push their beliefs on me.”

Police guarded the roads that led to parking areas and made sure that neither side group of protestors stepped off of the pavement, the only place they were allowed to protest.

“Loving your neighbor is to not suffer this sin upon them,” Phelps-Roper said. “You warn them that their sin is taking them to hell, and then it says that if you don’t do that, you hate your neighbor in your heart. You’re not supposed to do that, you’re not supposed to be hating on your neighbor. So that’s why we do it. We do it because it’s our duty.”

But many of those dissenting against the WBC do not consider the actions of WBC to be beneficial ones.

“I hope that Emporia, at least Emporia, is more accepting of everyone,” Benitez said. “I think (Phelps is) really ignorant, just like any other kind of racist, sexist bastard.”

WBC members said they do not consider themselves hateful or racist, only that they are trying to save those they feel are in danger of going to hell.

“You’d think that they wouldn’t oppose us, wouldn’t you?” Phelps-Roper said. “I mean, if they were blind and they were heading towards a cliff, and we lifted up a really loud voice and said, ‘don’t go over the cliff, hello,” do you think they would really be hating on us like they do now?”

Members of the WBC left earlier than they had anticipated, saying that it was too cold to stay.

“I hope to send Fred away which, clearly, we did,” said Brittani LeMay, sophomore elementary education major and member of P.R.I.D.E. “They weren’t here for very long and we had a lot of support from the high school and a lot of people from the university came out and gave support.”

Alex Pedersen/The Bulletin

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