Swimming In The Black Community: How Racism Is Drowning Us

discodumpling

Well-Known Member
So I just signed dd and ds up for the free houston parks swim lessons. Those few slots at the park were gone in 6 mins. I had to set my alarm so I didnt miss it.

So ds and dd have 2 free weeks and 4 paid weeks of lessons. And I'll take them to a pool to practice a few times a week.
Dd has been told she has the potential to be a very good swimmer so i want her to start taking lessons all year.

Yes! Free swim programs abound! We have one here compliments of the NYC Parks Dept. Slots are awarded via a lottery several times per year.
 

PJaye

Well-Known Member
I get it, but I have absolutely no interest in swimming and it has nothing to do with hair or bodily fluids, or whatever. I just don't find splashing around in water to be entertaining; I never did. More power to those that enjoy it.
 

HappilyLiberal

Well-Known Member
In my area if your family receives food stamps or Medicaid, all the local community sports are FREE. Cheerleading too. You can get assistance with uniforms to a point. In HS we fundraised all the time. I attended a predominately black HS and many of the very talented kids in all area were poor. So we fundraised. Our little community came out. We raised thousands a year.

Girl... around here, their idea of fundraising is to put basketball jersey's (because it's always a basketball team) on the kids and have them begging passing motorists for coins at intersections!
 
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nyeredzi

Well-Known Member
Being from Florida everyone knew that you rocked small box braids that lasted 8-10 weeks in the summer. That way mama didn't have to worry about that. We ALL knew---hey....over the summer we going to the pool in so and so community or this community to learn to swim. Or headed to Orlando for the theme parks or the local water parks. At-home braiders STAYED busy in May and June. Extra bonus cause everyone had a hair growth spurt when school started in August.
Yeah, this is why I don't think of braids, even with extensions, as being a vanity thing for kids. The ones with extensions in my opinion last longer and tangle less. They are functional. I went to summer camp in Compton for many years, through Compton Parks & Recreation, it was all black, and we went swimming every week. Maybe not everyone was a good swimmer, but going every week in the summer, you at least learned enough not to drown. And braids meant you didn't have to keep getting your hair done over and over.
 

Femmefatal1981

Well-Known Member
Yeah, this is why I don't think of braids, even with extensions, as being a vanity thing for kids. The ones with extensions in my opinion last longer and tangle less. They are functional. I went to summer camp in Compton for many years, through Compton Parks & Recreation, it was all black, and we went swimming every week. Maybe not everyone was a good swimmer, but going every week in the summer, you at least learned enough not to drown. And braids meant you didn't have to keep getting your hair done over and over.
We are all getting summer braids as we speak, lol.
 

Royalq

Well-Known Member
Alot of black kids have no pools nearby. Black people from the island have way more swimmers. Growing up I only encountered beaches and water once a year when we had a cook out at the state park. I always went to the kiddy pool because i was scared of the pool. I lived in an apartment with no pools around. It wasnt until my parents bought a house when i was about 10 and my dad bought a above ground swimming pool. We were in there all day in the summer and I eventually self-taught how to swim and my dad taught me how to float on my back. Aside from my own back yard there wasnt a pool for miles. So many AAs simple dont encounter pools enough.
 

rabs77

Well-Known Member
I learnt how to swim aged about 9 but that was an anomaly, especially as a girl, because Ghanaian parents do not care for water and swimming at all for fear of drowning. My mom was pretty liberal and had to fight my grandma to allow us to go to the pool. It was only ever us and a few other black kids in the pool. Rest were always expats. I think things are gradually changing now.
 

Cheleigh

Well-Known Member
Thanks for the reminder to sign-up again for swim lessons for my kid. She took them last year at 3, and is now again enrolled at 4. She'll probably do two sessions this year if possible. Cost for group lessons is very reasonable here. My DH is a solid swimmer. I cannot tread water (can get from point A to B and can float), so I can't swim. Hope to rectify that this summer.
 

RUBY

Well-Known Member
My kids take swimming lessons but I don't swim yet. My priority was always to get them swimming and then worry about myself. I'll do it sometime this year, but honestly public pools gross me out.


The bolded is so true for me. Some people are so nasty and I don't want to be swimming and possibly ingesting their in their juices.
 

naturalgyrl5199

Well-Known Member
Girl... around here, their idea of fundraising is the put basketball jersey's (because it's always a basketball team) on the kids and have them begging passing motorists for coins at intersections!
Yeah that's dangerous. But our band actually did that the same day we had a big car wash. We raised $2K in 6 hours. We were not allowed to do that anymore. But the car wash was a hit. We needed to do something different. Cause selling candy and treats were falling out of favor. So we went to the local flea market/swap meet in the hood...donned our HS band t-shirts and got to washing. Someone just got the idea to kind of panhandle. But our community is poor but loved us...and came through. Even sent more people later. And my HS is 100 years old...historically black. It felt so good. So good. We did a BBQ at another. My people love BBQ.
 

Femmefatal1981

Well-Known Member
Yeah that's dangerous. But our band actually did that the same day we had a big car wash. We raised $2K in 6 hours. We were not allowed to do that anymore. But the car wash was a hit. We needed to do something different. Cause selling candy and treats were falling out of favor. So we went to the local flea market/swap meet in the hood...donned our HS band t-shirts and got to washing. Someone just got the idea to kind of panhandle. But our community is poor but loved us...and came through. Even sent more people later. And my HS is 100 years old...historically black. It felt so good. So good. We did a BBQ at another. My people love BBQ.
I should have known you went there!
 

Kanky

Well-Known Member
My little ones are taking swimming lessons this summer. The moms at preschool recommended this swim instructor who claims that your kid will be swimming well in a week or your money back. She is expensive, but I don't want to have to take them to the other classes that last for weeks.
 

brg240

Well-Known Member
I know what you're saying, but poor ppl stay affording cable. They stay affording the latest cellphones and video game consoles. PPl don't prioritize and don't want to sacrifice. So to answer your questions:
You have 4 kids, then each year a different kid takes swim lessons enough to try swimming on their own.
You live an hour away from the nearest pool? Catch a bus. Unless you live out in rural country, there's usually a bus somewhere. Or round up a carpool in your neighborhood or hook your kid up with some classmates. These options aren't just accessible to soccer moms in the 'burbs.
Tennis was a luxury, yet the Williams sisters prevailed.

Yes, there are times when things are just too impossible...BUT those who want it bad enough find a way.
Um it takes the bus 50 min to get to my job and it requires me to walk a mile. I live 13 min from my job. It takes 1.5 hrs to get to my old church 20 min away. Public transport isn't great everywhere.
Also, everyone isn't spending like that. I used to work for a tutoring company that worked for low income families and we'd give laptops out. Other companies would give iPads or pay a bill.

Also if I'm choosing between swimming and the internet I'm choosing the internet. There is a terrible technology gap between the poor and middle class/rich that hinders kids in school.
 

IronButterfly

Well-Known Member
Also if I'm choosing between swimming and the internet I'm choosing the internet. There is a terrible technology gap between the poor and middle class/rich that hinders kids in school.
Then your inability not to swim isn't a symptom of racism, but of your own personal choices.
I am very well of the technology gap between different economic structures in school. I've seen them with my own eyes. However, a good education isn't reliant on the latest iPad. Funny, poor folks all over can afford iPhones with cameras capturing every silly selfie or instances of police brutality. Most "poor" ppl I know have NEVER had a problem affording the latest gadgets. YET the same individuals are hindered in school because of a technological gap? I'm more inclined to believe the hindrance is either something that comes from a less than supportive home environment or personal choices. Granted, upper middle/rich class kids have immediate access to things poor kids may not, but, from my experience, poor kids tend to have crappier attitudes which probably contributes to their failures.
Remember, poor kids today are rich compared to the poor kids from days gone by.
 

IronButterfly

Well-Known Member
Um it takes the bus 50 min to get to my job and it requires me to walk a mile. I live 13 min from my job. It takes 1.5 hrs to get to my old church 20 min away. Public transport isn't great everywhere.
.
When I was a child, my mother and I had to catch the bus an hour to the grocery store and back. Sometimes she didn't have the 5 cents for the bus fare, so we had to walk, carrying heavy groceries and all. I remember often having to take a rest several times on the way home at 8, 9, 10 years old and her getting mad and telling to me to plow through. "We're almost there!" she'd say.
In junior high and high school, it took me over an hour to get to school and back on the bus. At one point in high school, I had to catch a bus, the train, and the bus to school. Two hours!

Oh, and then when I lived briefly with my grandmother, I had to walk two miles in freezing weather just to get to work for lack of bus.

So, yeah. Tell me something I don't already know. I grew up on the bus. We do what we need to do. And yet, somehow I learned to swim and have internet.
 

brg240

Well-Known Member
When I was a child, my mother and I had to catch the bus an hour to the grocery store and back. Sometimes she didn't have the 5 cents for the bus fare, so we had to walk, carrying heavy groceries and all. I remember often having to take a rest several times on the way home at 8, 9, 10 years old and her getting mad and telling to me to plow through. "We're almost there!" she'd say.
In junior high and high school, it took me over an hour to get to school and back on the bus. At one point in high school, I had to catch a bus, the train, and the bus to school. Two hours!

Oh, and then when I lived briefly with my grandmother, I had to walk two miles in freezing weather just to get to work for lack of bus.

So, yeah. Tell me something I don't already know. I grew up on the bus. We do what we need to do. And yet, somehow I learned to swim and have internet.
Lol okay I'm glad you have pulled yourself up by your boot straps and have figured everything out
 

yaya24

♥Naija°Texan • Realtor • SPX Options #RichAunty●♡•
I've taken swimming lessons and I've swam in a pool, but I still wouldn't say I swim. It's a skill like most things that has to be done repetitively. We've thought of putting a pool in but haven't. I've friends with pools and I should practice there, but I haven't. At this point I know it's on me. I come from a family of non-swimmers.
This is my story too
 

Enyo

Well-Known Member
For me, swimming is a pleasure, but I think everyone should learn to float, tread, and doggie paddle as a means of survival. If you fall into a body of water that is too deep to stand, you need basic skills to either get to the nearest exit point or stay buoyant until a rescuer can get you. It also increases confidence. Knowing that you can preserve your own life while in/near the water makes everything more enjoyable at pools, beaches, on boats, etc.

If I'm ever fool enough to have a baby, my child will be in infant swim/ISR classes ASAP.
 

cocosweet

Well-Known Member
Since summer began, my ds has gone from not being able to stick his head in the water without throwing a hissy fit to treading water and dog paddling.

My daughter has gone from only staying in shallow end to jumping of the diving board although she has had lessons she is still a beginner level swimmer but her comfort in the water has increased a lot. She took lessons a couple of years ago, but she and her instructor clashed. That can sour a child on learning how to swim too. Dh just kept taking them to the pool and tried to show them things.

I am taking swim lessons through a nearby community center. I am showing the kids what I learn when I go practice. It's only for two weeks, but I have learned more than I did in two semesters of high school. I paid $50 for 8 1/2 hour classes but since my instructor teaches three classes back to back she lets us stay for the next session too. Win!
It's hard work but it's been worth it.
 

Leeda.the.Paladin

Well-Known Member
4-Year-Old Girl And Her Grandfather Drown In Backyard Pool

BALTIMORE (WJZ) — A 4-year-old girl and her grandfather drowned in a backyard pool Thursday afternoon in Anne Arundel County.

The drowning happened in the unit block of Jamar Dr. in Severna Park, and the two were swimming in a neighbor’s pool after getting permission to use it.

The Anne Arundel County Fire Department said there were other children there at the time of the drownings.

The 4-year-old reportedly jumped into the deep end of the pool, but she did not know how to swim.

Other children noticed she was at the bottom of the pool and told her grandfather, who also didn’t know how to swim. He then jumped in to try and save her.

The other children ran across the street to get other family members, who immediately call 911 after seeing the two at the bottom of the pool.

“They alerted the male that was watching them. He jumped into the pool but unfortunately did not know how to swim and began to get into some distress himself,” said Lt. Jen McKee of the Anne Arundel County Fire Department. “And the fire department immediately pulled both of the victims out of the pool, they aggressively tried to resuscitate both of them, but unfortunately by the time they got to the hospital and the hospital tried to resuscitate them, they weren’t successful.”

The two were taken to a hospital after being removed from the pool, but were later pronounced dead.

Recent statistics show 245 people drowned in Maryland in a five-year period.

“Very sad, very very tragic. Just thinking of the family and prayers to them,” said Carmen Collins of Severna Park.

Police have not released the names of the victims. They want to make sure family members are notified first.

The police department said homicide detectives were on scene, but the investigation is now closed because it’s clear this was an accident.


 

Theresamonet

Well-Known Member
Quoting myself...

I thought of this thread earlier. Today was my first private swimming lesson. I paid for 8 weekly lessons, and I hope to be comfortable enough to start swimming for fitness this summer.

Yay! How was your first lesson?

I still can’t truly swim after my lessons earlier last year, but I have the basics down now. And the biggest difference is that I’m a lot more comfortable and relaxed in the water. I was able to enjoy myself on my trip to Hawaii in October, which is what I was prepping for. I plan to keep taking lessons until I can swim like a mermaid.
 

OhTall1

Well-Known Member
Yay! How was your first lesson?

I still can’t truly swim after my lessons earlier last year, but I have the basics down now.
It was great! I'm also trying to get the basics down.
I could already float a little, so I'm not completely afraid to be in the water. She focused on getting me comfortable with having my face in the water and on how to kick. By the end of the first lesson, I was able to go a short distance using one of those barbell floaty things. I'm not used to being in the water, so it didn't occur to me until the end of the class that I had on goggles and could keep my eyes open. :wallbash: That's when I realized that I was actually propelling myself forward without the instructor's help.
 

Theresamonet

Well-Known Member
It was great! I'm also trying to get the basics down.
I could already float a little, so I'm not completely afraid to be in the water. She focused on getting me comfortable with having my face in the water and on how to kick. By the end of the first lesson, I was able to go a short distance using one of those barbell floaty things. I'm not used to being in the water, so it didn't occur to me until the end of the class that I had on goggles and could keep my eyes open. :wallbash: That's when I realized that I was actually propelling myself forward without the instructor's help.

That sounds like a great first day! At my first lesson I discovered that I could float perfectly (I’d never tried before). That made things easier, but a lot of time was spent making me put my head underwater. :lol:

Good luck!
 
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