I guess today is a good day to reflect on a memory from Halloween 1975 at BYU.

Halloween costume parties used to be a really big thing at BYU (and probably still the same).

I remember walking through the BYU Wilkinson Center in 1975 and people in their costumes were going in all directions to parties all over campus and nearby locations.

A beautiful girl dressed up like a southern belle with the big long skirt and dressed like a lady from the South pre-civil war. Her companion (boyfriend?) was dressed like a black slave with blackface making his face, hands and arms black, and an afro wig. He wore tattered clothes that could have possibly been slave clothes. A dog collar was around the guy's neck with a chain that was carried by the girl as they walked side by side.

Apparently, nobody thought that was inappropriate at the time. I suspect that the same costumes would probably not be allowed now-a-days.

Well, now they have Black kids on campus, so...

I went to BYU in 1975 and I remember a Black kid. So there!

Back in 1975 there were certainly very few Blacks on campus and even very few in all of Orem/Provo/ Springville/ American Fork.

Basketball and football teams (and track) had a token black athlete or 2, but not many back then.

Interestingly, when the blacks got the priesthood in 1978, the Black Mormon male students on campus were generally really popular, and even had no problem dating white BYU girls.

The First Presidency sent a memo to the BYU President in about 1978 or 1979 and told him that he'd better not let any of the Blacks marry the granddaughters of the General Authorities! . . . and that is a true story . . .

mrx Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Back in 1975 there were certainly very few Blacks
> on campus and even very few in all of Orem/Provo/
> Springville/ American Fork.

BYU itself reports that currently the black students at the Provo campus make up 1% of the student body...

https://news.byu.edu/byu-numbers

Why do I suddenly have a hankering for saltines?

last I was down there I didn't see any blacks, but there were tongans and islanders all over. And I had an uncle there in 76 and he says he knew black girls who were from Ghana or Nigeria who came from wealthy families (royalty). They were very scared when Lee died because it was rumored that Kimball was very racist, or rather the African girls thought "he didn't like black people."

Mormon Halloween in the late 60's early 70's was funn ~


can confirm ~


errybody dressed up in costume ~


Mom and Dad units dressed up as well ~


Broadway Ward in Houston Texas ~


enter at the kitchen entrance cuz Ma brought some food ~


it is pack shoulder ~ to ~ shoulder with Mormons ~


Elders be handling coolers of carbonated beverages, slapping backs and be exchanging corny remarks and jokes ~


Sisters be slinging the food and gossip out the kitchen, flirting with said elders ~


the basketball gym and stage was a six-ring circus of activity for the kiddos ~


a "haunted house" was set up by the Aaronic Priesthood leeders utilizing even the holy babtismal font areas ~


if you drive by ther today ~


3000 Broadway St, Houston, TX 77017 ~


you can still see the high-water mark left by Mormonism in those glorious days ~

Broadway? Near Hobby airport? I used to date a girl in college that lived off of Belfort.