Does Race Determine Our Interests?
I donāt seem too thrilled
One of the first things I remember learning about the outdoors is that black people donāt do them.Ā Black people donāt go outside, and go off intoā¦the wilderness?Ā No, sir.Ā We donāt do the outdoors.Ā We donāt do extreme sports.Ā We donāt get in the water.Ā We donāt not season our food.Ā There were just things we did not do.Ā Where did I learn this?Ā Family, friends, TV, books, magazines, your aunt, your cousinā¦it was so ingrained in my mind, ingrained in black culture.Ā I donāt even really know where I first happened upon these proclamations.
As a kid, I remember always feeling like I was on the outside of that āweā.Ā Because, hell, I had hopes and dreams that included doing all of those things!Ā I was (and still am) a tomboy that loved playing in the woods with the boys.Ā I loved jumping from high places because the adrenaline rush excited me.Ā Am I not black?Ā Am I a special kind of black?Ā No one else in my immediate family was really into the outdoors or adventure sports like I was.Ā So where did I get this lust from?
Exploring ancient limestone rocks at Castle Hill in New Zealand
Over the years, I was told by many of my black friends, āthat I liked to do white people sh*tā.Ā This is one of the reasons that I began traveling solo ā it was hard to find anyone that wanted to do the things I wanted to do.
Skydiving over the Southern Alps
Ā They were referring to my desires to go camping, skiing, skydiving, hiking, cliff jumping, etc.Ā Donāt get me wrong, it doooes appear to be more common for white people to engage in some pretty āout thereā pursuits that seemingly no other ethnicity would dare pursueā¦(thatās a stereotype)
But thatās not what weāre talking about here.Ā White people have long been onto something about the outdoors that black and brown people need to get up on.
I know what youāre thinking, Black People: itās more than just a saying or some random belief that we created.Ā
For one, itās rooted deep in our history ā the ugly, hateful, and terrifying history of slavery and civil rights in the United States (in addition to similar injustices around the world).Ā Black people donāt go into the woods because bad things happen to black people in the woods.Ā The immediate imagery most black people get when they think of rural areas and the wilderness is, drumroll please: being lynched.Ā Itās not a mental picture of waterfalls, gorgeous mountains, connecting with the Earth, and finding yourself.Ā Itās not cozy camp fires.Ā Itās burning crosses.
Lynching of Roosevelt Townes and Robert McDaniels, April 1937. Wiki Commons
Ku Klux Klan members burning a cross in Denver, CO in 1921. Wiki Commons
This may sound extreme to some of you but it is the harsh reality of the kind of fear some black people have of the outdoors.Ā It used to be, and unfortunately still is in some rare cases, a very realistic fear.Ā But for the most part, today itās an irrational fear thatās holding black people back from experiencing some of the best things life has to offer.Ā I had a black male friend tell me that he doesnāt āexplore outside the city lines.āĀ Thatās crazy!Ā We shouldnāt just hand ownership of the outdoors over to other groups of people.Ā No one āownsā the wilderness and that is its beauty.Ā There is something phenomenal beyond the woods.
Perfect campsite in British Columbia, Canada
Another factor affecting this belief simply stems from the economic inability to partake in many of these activities.Ā Iāve got to say, as simple as it sounds to lay in a tent at the foot of a mountain in front of a river, it is not a poor manās activity.Ā These kinds of recreational endeavors are quite expensive.Ā The equipment needed for them are costly.Ā The fees, the permits, the TIMEā¦these things were historically out of reach for the black community either because there was a lack of financial resources, a lack of access, or both.Ā And itās a problem that systemically stillĀ remains today.Ā
Some black people donāt swim because they donāt know how to swim.Ā Maybe they donāt know how because their grandparents were denied access to a community pool.Ā Or, there was no community pool.Ā So their grandparents never swam, which, for the sake of brevity, led to their parents never learning how to swim either.Ā And so on.
Thankfully, my parents put my brother and I in swimming lessons when we were young so I donāt fear the water.Ā I respect it.Ā The above picture with my mom says that I was a little skeptical in the beginning as a baby.Ā I wonder if I already knew then that āblack people didnāt swimā.Ā Ā
Snorkeling in the Cayman Islands
In the past couple of years, I have seen a refreshing rise in the number of black people participating in so called āwhite activities,ā like hiking, mountain climbing, and camping.Ā More accurately, my exposure to it has increased ā mostly on Instagram, a photo and video sharing application for social networking.Ā Accounts like @BrownPeopleCamping, @UnlikelyHikers, and @MelaninBaseCamp, for example, enthusiastically highlight minorities in the outdoors.Ā So, interest is growing!Ā
Though, when Iām actually traveling on my outdoors-themed trips, many times I am the only black person (or one of very few) in a particular settingā¦for hundreds of miles.Ā I donāt mind it.Ā I donāt get uncomfortable.Ā Iām cool with everybody ā and my background has prepared me to hold my own in any situation.Ā But it tells me there is still work to be done to encourage more black and brown people to get outside with nature.
Hiking in Haleakala in Maui, HI
Here I am, looking at some of the most beautiful sights on Earth wondering why more of my black people are not out here witnessing it for themselves, too.Ā Why are they not enjoying this feeling of freedom and spirituality that is connected with being entrenched in nature?Ā Why are they not laid out on this lake enjoying waterfall, glacial, and mountain views, too.Ā I want it for them.
Atop Big Beehive looking over Lake Louise in Banff, Canada
This is not to say that everyone should be an outdoorsy person.Ā Some people, of all backgrounds, just donāt like being outside.Ā I get it.Ā I mean, I donāt get it but I get it. Ā Those people would gladly pass up all things great about the outdoors so that they donāt have to endure it.Ā My goal isnāt to change those people.Ā What I want you to take away from this is that your skin color does not dictate what your tastes are.Ā If youāre green and most green people love the color pink, but you like yellow, LIKE YELLOW!Ā Be authentically and unapologetically you.Ā If youāre black and you like to hike or camp or snowboard, youāre a black person that likes to hike, camp, or snowboard.Ā Not a black person that likes to do āwhite people sh*tā.
Appreciating views in Mt. Rainier National Park
I love the outdoors, and I think that everyone should get a regular dose of Mother Nature to help keep them grounded.Ā Then again, I also dread the thought of an overcrowded wilderness so Iām glad Iām only part of a percentage of people who enjoy it.Ā But get out there, Black People!Ā Thereās a whole Earth waiting for you to explore.Ā Thereās an entire universe waiting for you to connect.Ā
My Mom is not an outdoors person.Ā Mustāve been her youth.
Ā There is something special about being immersed in nature.Ā Something physically, mentally, and emotionally rewarding about hiking to the top of a mountain.Ā Or drinking water straight from a natural source.Ā The air is cleaner.Ā The views are better.Ā My head is clearer.Ā Itās something spiritual.
Ā Ā Ā Have you struggled with identifying what activities you like to do based on your race?Ā Have you heard any of these contentions before?Ā Are you outdoorsy?Ā What are some ways we can encourage more black and brown people to get outside in nature?Ā
Drop a comment below and let me know your thoughts!Ā
Ā Black People Have Convinced Black People That We Aren't Outdoorsy Does Race Determine Our Interests?
