From the PNJ.com
"...The reasons few black Americans become involved in swimming or even learn how to swim are many. Louis Makarowski, a sports psychiatrist who earned a degree from Iowa University, said the breakdown of black families.
"The greatest contributor to crime and economic inequality has been the break up of African-American families," said Makarowski, who has an office in Pensacola. "Swimming is an elite sport. To be involved on a team as a swimmer or to learn how to swim can be expensive."
Makarowski also credited racial identity has a key issue that keeps black Americans from becoming swimmers.
"One issue is racial identity regarding sports and recreation," Makarowski said. "To be authentically black, many African Americans feel they need to play basketball, football or baseball."
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8 comments:
I don't buy the "expensive" argument. Belonging to a swim club might be pricey, but basic swim lessons are less expensive than football gear or name-brand basketball shoes.
I think a big indicator is whether or not the parents swim. (Not always - neither of mine could swim, but they sent all five of us for lessons.) If a lot of public pools were off-limits to blacks years ago, when segregation was allowed, so a whole generation might not have learned to swim...then their children and their children's children would have also not learned. Perhaps swim lessons in schools are the answer.
I've been following the T.I. forum for a while. There's a fellow there who taught himself to swim using T.I. and now wants to inspire other African-Americans, especially kids, to learn to swim. His progress is nothing short of amazing - in just one year he's gone from complete beginner to long open water swims in San Fransisco bay.
I think it's more to do with culture, too.
Swimming seems one of those things you have to do x times a week, every week, from when you're a child, so does require commitment and importance placed on it by the parents. It also needs to be seen as something ethnic minorities do and participate in (role models are needed perhaps).
It definitely needs to be discussed.
Role models and parents that swim (or are not afraid of the water) are both key. I can also say that as a very petite Asian American female who came into swimming late in life, it would have helped to have had other ethnic swimmers featured in the mainstream (advertising is a big one) to aspire to as a young child. Further that, it would have helped my parents to view swimming as a non-elite sport that they could comfortably send there child into.
See how many African-Americans are on the beach. Just a handeful, the same for competitive swimming. Its just not in their "blood".
Swimming is in everybody's blood. There are stone tablets on the African continent of warriors swimming.
Tony, remember Tom Cruise's movie where they said, "Show Me the Money"! There is no money in swimming. You ever notice in an NFL or NBA game the satarting lineups are usually 80% African-American and everyone is making $1 Million or more! Why go into swimming when one can just pickup a ball and start playing. No Club fees and entry fees. If minorities are to get involved, better make it free.
In Los Angeles pool time is free if you have a library card.
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