Culture & Society
In 2009, black kids can't swim in Valley Club pool
By: Devona Walker
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Thu, 07/09/2009 - 15:45
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In the suburbs of Philadelphia, at a place called the Valley Club, 65 black and Hispanic kids had their club memberships rescinded because the white folks at the club didn’t like seeing all those black faces in the pool. The manager of the club said the kids were changing the “complexion” and atmosphere of the club.
This story made me angrier more than just about anything in recent memory. More than the wrongfully accused black men still serving time in prison. More than all the ghetto parasites put together — payday and subprime lenders, liquor stores, and MSG-soaked take-out joints combined. It doesn’t involve billions of dollars of wealth, but it’s actually more important. It involves our children, our youth, our innocence and our best hopes for the future.
When adults encounters racism, it might infuriate them or cause them to demand an apology. But when it happens to children, it affects them the rest of their lives. It robs them of something very precious. I know, I still remember the first time I heard the word nigger and the shame I felt.
If you haven't heard the details, Alethea Wright registered online for 65 kids from Creative Steps Day Camp to use the pool on Mondays from 3:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. But when the kids show up at this lilly white, wannabe country club, things immediately fell apart. Wright overheard some white club members making disparaging remarks about the CHILDREN.
Initially, the club president reassured Wright it would be worked out. But two days later, he told her the board had decided not to allow the kids to use the pool anymore. He released a statement saying "there was concern that a lot of kids would change the complexion" and "the atmosphere" of the club.
When one of the kids heard the word complexion, he teared up, according to his mother, Christine Templeton. "He's dark-skinned," Templeton told The Philadelphia Inquirer. “He wondered if he had the wrong skin color to go into the pool. He will never forget this."
OK, this is 2009 right? Supposedly after the Civil Rights Movement?
And haven’t we already seen this made into a movie, based on something that happened way back in 1974? The movie was Pride, starring Terrence Howard and the late Bernie Mac. That was the story of another black kid in Philadelphia, Jim Ellis, who endured all sorts of racism as a swimmer. Other teams would actually get out of the pool and forfeit the competition when they saw him. Later, Ellis began coaching a group of kids from the Philadelphia Parks and Recreation Center, who went through the same thing he went through, which is the same thing these kids are going through ... today.
Another black swimmer, Olympic gold medalist Cullen Jones, is also outraged. "The acts of blatant racism shown towards the young kids ... have no place in America and should not be tolerated by anyone," he said.
And that's putting it nicely. Here we are in 2009, and you are telling me the "city of brotherly love" still hasn’t gotten its act together? It’s disgusting. I’m no pollyanna, but to be honest, I thought America was better than this.
Devona Walker is TheLoop21.com's senior reporter/blogger.
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COMMENTS
Devonna, this in one that I could not pass by.
I know a basic research attorney who has spent 40 years of dedicated scientific study into the foundational relationships (the so-called black/white dychotomy) in this country. He discovered the root cause of this problem, and has designed new psychosocial tools that can be applied to transcend this country's longstanding symptoms, which reveal themselves as ethnic hate, poverty, ignorance, blame, shame, ought-tos.
The fact is both sides of the African American and European American families are affected by this problem, and it is simply not possible to legislate the problem away. A debriefing of sorts must occur. New debriefing tools and individual freedom curriculum have now been created for the person to get the facts, grow in awareness of his/her own being ness, define themselves, make proposals and socialize what they have with others. And to become responsible and accountable for themselves.
The problem is we don't have a factual foundation as a starting point. People come with different experiences, opinions, beliefs and notions about what to do. This particular researcher establishes principles, facts and truths as a starting point; therefore, the whole Ethnic American Family can grow at an accelerated pace - culturally, economically, academically, and socially.
If you are interesed in interviewing this basic researcher, I can get you a meeting.
Thanks for the opportunit to comment.
it is not the kids color which made problem, it was their undisciplined behavior
Who is this Devona Walker person? Appears to be someone who is constantly looking for the race angle in every situation. The Club has the right to exclude anybody they want to, after all, it is a private club. The word "complexion" doesn't always refer to a person's skin color. Such juvenile thinking. America has more wealthy, educated, creative, upwardly mobile Black people than any other country but unfortunately we have these type who are always looking to be "victims" of racism!! Give me a break! I am a (proud)Black American by the way . . . yeah, some of us don't have a persecution complex, we just keep on keeping on . .
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