Chase Oliver Reflects on Impactful Experience in Selma and Montgomery
2/1/2023 8:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
The Wake Forest men’s soccer junior and administrator Dwight Lewis were part of a three-day trip to Alabama in the summer of 2022 with the ACC.
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Last summer, Wake Forest men's soccer junior Chase Oliver had the distinction of being selected to the ACC's traveling delegation to Selma and Montgomery, Ala., where the 48 student-athletes and administrators across the league's 15 member institutions took part in a three-day immersive journey to one of the centers of the Civil Rights Movement as part of ACC UNITE. 
After connecting with Wake Forest Associate Athletic Director for Community and Alumni Relations Dwight Lewis about joining him for the experience, Oliver knew it was a trip he wanted to take.
"This specific trip was a big one in particular because it combined the ACC, the Big Ten and the PAC 12. So I already knew this was a big opportunity," Oliver said. "To get a great experience like that is not something that everyone gets to come in contact with. Whether it be the museums or the people that we met from the marches from back then. So as soon as I heard I said yes, absolutely."
During the three days in Alabama, Oliver's social justice experience included hearing from Sheyann Webb-Christburg, visiting the Interpretive Center at Alabama State University, the Civil Rights Memorial Center, the Alabama Department of Archives and History, the award-winning Equal Justice Initiative (EJI) Legacy Museum and the First Baptist Church, the headquarters for the Dallas County Voters League, which was the student nonviolent coordination committee.
Also known as "The Movement Church," it is where hundreds of students began their days' long journey from Selma to Montgomery in 1965.
"To hear from [Sheyann Webb-Christburg] and get her perspective on what happened and how impactful it was was just really impressive," Oliver said. "Then to leave First Baptist Church and walk over to the Edmund Pettus Bridge and across, that's where the confrontation began. So we were going through a city which hasn't changed much, it's a very historical city. They haven't really put in any restaurants and there's been no gentrification, nothing like that. Seeing that was grounding and emotional for a lot of people. It was certainly emotional for me."
The Edmund Pettus Bridge was the site of the Bloody Sunday attack in 1965. Together, Oliver and the rest of the ACC representation marched across that same bridge where men and women showcased bravery and sacrifice in support of voting rights for all.
"Once you get under that Edmund Pettus Bridge sign it's like, 'wow,' it really hits you. We were watching videos and little short films about what occurred on that day," Oliver said. "You're seeing the malice they were met with when they walked, you just think how far we've come, all these people of color from different universities, high-level education from across the nation are walking across Edmund Pettus Bridge, this is something that is monumental.
"I think that really sunk in, especially when you get across the bridge, because you cross the bridge where they set up the police line with the horses, batons and tear gas. So to be able to complete that walk and cross that line, I mean you're crossing barriers that people before us couldn't do. It's very humbling."
During the summer of 2020 when Oliver was an incoming freshman, the Wake Forest men's soccer team created Different But United, which has become the ethos of the program. Despite their different backgrounds and upbringings, the program is based in a commonality of fighting for what's right while also being anti-racist.
Oliver carried his Different But United shirt with him as he crossed the Edmund Pettus Bridge. The fight for equality and justice continues.
"I think a lot of people look at activism as performative or trendy, but I've tried to keep that fire alive within my team. I'm someone who cares a lot about self-activism and group-activism," Oliver said. "Any type of activism that empowers you or empowers people around you is important.
"I think Coach Muuss has done a really good job of talking to me and talking to other guys in the team about what we want to do and how we can get our own message out there and how we can express how we're feeling while also staying united because that's what we want to do. It's about human rights and how we can empower other people. I don't think that should ever slow. Although it has, I think we're still looking for different ways to recapitalize that type of activism in a very appropriate way."
