Got Your Back
A.B.L.E (Allied Blacks for Liberty and Equality) was founded in 1968 with a mission to "to make life at Knox College more relevant to Black students." Despite Knox's proclaimed history of abolition and Black students being allowed to enroll, the college only had two African-Americans graduate between 1870 and 1902. Even from then Black students were far and few between. The year A.B.L.E was founded only had 3 incoming Black freshmen but the groundwork for the organization had been set. Early demands included a Black professor and a cultural house that still stands today. Though, there was a period where the house was taken and used for offices which resulted in a protest. One notable sit-in was at Old Main, the location of the famous Lincoln-Douglas debate that Knox promotes constantly. The organization celebrated its 50th year anniversary during Homecoming in 2018 where the bronze “Got Your Back” sculpture by Emeritus Trustee Fay Stevenson-Smith M.D. '64 was permanently installed in Alumni Hall. The sculpture consists of three people leaning on each other. The artwork acts as a place of reflection and remembrance on all that A.B.L.E has contributed. Knox has gradually become more accessible to black students because black students themselves took on the hard work of fighting to make space for their voices. Early black students were attending a 99% white college and had to lean on each other’s back in the metaphorical sense that the sculpture represents. A.B.L.E’s legacy has made Knox what it is today in terms of inclusivity though the more common story focuses on Lincoln and abolition activists. Knox's abolitionist history is relevant but the creation of the sculpture and its placement in Alumni tell an important story that deserves to be told and acknowledged.