Written by Tiffany Jones
Carmen Cuadra was walking back from dinner with friends on Friday, Feb. 5th when a car drove past them quickly. She felt something hit the back of her head and turned around to see her friend with ice on her face. The boys in the car sped away, shouting obscenities, as the group of friends tried to figure out what happened. They were the latest victims in a series of attacks on Walton scholars.
In this school year there have been three accounts of ice being thrown at Walton scholars walking to campus in Searcy. In November ice was thrown at a group of students walking back to school from the McDonald’s on Beebe Capps. One girl was bruised on her stomach from the ice. Later in that semester a different group of students, still Walton scholars, were attacked with ice as they were walking to Midnight Oil. No one was hit.
“They didn’t yell anything but they were laughing out loud.” said Estephany Estrada, one of the girls walking to Midnight Oil that night. “I don’t know how many times they were watching us and planning what to do.”
Allans Coello, a junior from Honduras, has seen this behavior in Searcy before. “When a group of Hispanic students like me are walking on the streets outside campus it is not rare that people yell at us.” While Allans has not been hit with ice, he has had his share of harassment this school year. He has been hit with eggs and once when walking back from the GAC with his girlfriend a group of boys started cursing and yelling at them.
Despite recent events Allans and Carmen have always felt welcomed and loved on Harding’s campus and do not think the people doing this are students here.
“Harding students are very welcoming and nice with international students. Some more than others, but I’ve never received a hostile reaction from anyone.” said Carmen.
The ice throwing cars having been described as black and white Suburbans and the ice throwers as young high school to college aged Caucasian males. If you have any information about the attacks please report it to Public Safety.
