http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080502/ap_on_re_us/swimming_blacks

Quote :

" NEW YORK - Nearly 60 percent of African-American children can't swim, almost twice the figure for white children, according to a first-of-its-kind survey which USA Swimming hopes will strengthen its efforts to lower minority drowning rates and draw more blacks into the sport. ADVERTISEMENT Stark statistics underlie the initiative by the national governing body for swimming. Black children drown at a rate almost three times the overall rate. And less than 2 percent of USA Swimming's nearly 252,000 members who swim competitively year-round are black. To alter the numbers, USA Swimming is teaming with an array of partners — local governments, corporations, youth and ethnic organizations_ to expand learn-to-swim programs nationwide, many of them targeted at inner-city minorities. One of the key participants is black freestyle star Cullen Jones, who hopes to boost his role-model status by winning a medal this summer at the Beijing Olympics. USA Swimming's motives are twofold, executive director Chuck Wielgus said. "It's just the right thing to do — making an effort so every kid can be water-safe," he said. "And quite frankly it's about performance. We're something of a niche sport and for us to remain relevant, considering the changing demographics of the population, it's important we get more kids involved at the mouth of the pipeline." As part of the initiative, USA Swimming commissioned an ambitious study recently completed by five experts at the University of Memphis' Department of Health and Sports Sciences. They surveyed 1,772 children aged 6 to 16 in six cities — two-thirds of them black or Hispanic — to gauge what factors contributed most to the minority swimming gap. The study found that 31 percent of the white respondents could not swim safely, compared to 58 percent of the blacks. The non-swimming rate for Hispanic children was almost as high — 56 percent — although more than twice as many Hispanics as blacks are now USA Swimming members. The lead researcher, Professor Richard Irwin, said one key finding was the influence of parents' attitudes and abilities. If a parent couldn't swim, as was far more likely in minority families than white families, or if the parent felt swimming was dangerous, then the child was far less likely to learn how to swim. Irwin said this means learn-to-swim programs in minority communities should reach out to parents. Among black children, the study found that girls overall had weaker swimming skills than boys and were less comfortable at pools. Irwin said this might justify experimenting with single-sex swim programs, comparable to single-sex academic programs now spreading through some schools. The minority swimming gap has deep roots in America's racial history. For decades during the 20th century, many pools were segregated, and relatively few were built to serve black communities. John Cruzat, USA Swimming's diversity specialist, said these inequalities were compounded by a widespread misperception — fueled by flawed academic studies — that blacks' swimming ability was compromised by an innate deficit of buoyancy. "There are people who still give credence to these stereotypes, even in the black and Hispanic community," said Cruzat, who wants to break the cycle that passes negative attitudes about swimming from one black generation to another. "These long-held beliefs are still so potent," he said. "If you don't teach your children to swim, you're putting your grandchildren at risk." Cruzat was pleased by one finding in the new study — that most black and Hispanic children do not disdain swimming as a "white sport." The study also found that swimming ability, regardless of race, increased in relation to parents' income and education. The findings will be used by USA Swimming to fine-tune its steadily expanding Make a Splash program, in which it teams up with local partners to offer lessons and water-safety classes. Programs are starting this year at YMCAs in Philadelphia, Omaha, Neb., Raleigh, N.C., and San Jose, Calif. Wanda Butts of Toledo, Ohio, is participating in the program. Her 16-year-old son, Josh, drowned last year in a lake as he played with friends on a raft despite his inability to swim. Butts, 54, said her father once witnessed a drowning and passed on a fear of swimming to her, and she in turn never made efforts to have Josh learn to swim. Butts now travels periodically to preach the importance of learning to swim — in fact, she's taking lessons herself. She's also launched an initiative called the Josh Project, which ensures that lessons are free for families unable to afford them. "The best way is to start the children as young as possible," she said. Olympic hopeful Jones is the highest-profile Make a Splash campaigner. In 2006, he helped break a world record with the U.S. 400 freestyle relay team. He hopes to qualify in July for the Beijing Games, and knows that winning a medal there in the glamorous 50 meter freestyle would be a huge boost for the efforts to lure more black children into swimming. "There are African-Americans who swim, but they're in the background," Jones said. "People only pay attention when you're in the limelight." He still hears skeptical comments sometimes from adults in the black community, even from some of his relatives — but he sees little hesitation in the children he mentors in the pool. "I've done lessons with white and black kids — there's no kid out there who doesn't like jumping into a pool," he said. "When you're 6, you are fearless. That's the time to teach them." Among Jones' admirers is Pablo Morales, a son of Cuban-born parents who won Olympic swimming medals in 1984 and 1992 and now coaches at the University of Nebraska. "He can have an amazing impact," Morales said of Jones. "I cheer for him — and hope he can stay on top for a long time." But Morales acknowledges that swimming diversity has improved only marginally since his first Olympics. "Has progress been made? Yes," he said. "Has it been as extensive and as quick as we'd hoped? Definitely not." "

seems like theres a lot of things more important to study than this

5/2/2008 12:34:12 AM

this kind of confirms a lot of anecdotal observation on my part.

5/2/2008 12:35:32 AM

I think you should have to pass a swim test before you can graduate college like back in the days. You should have to take the test in your 100 level PE.

[Edited on May 2, 2008 at 12:38 AM. Reason : -]

5/2/2008 12:37:50 AM

Quote :

"Josh, drowned last year in a lake as he played with friends on a raft despite his inability to swim. "

despite his inability to swim? seems like his inability to swim would cause drowning

5/2/2008 12:38:50 AM

well it seems obvious that it would correlate to the parents income. belonging to a private pool/swim club is expensive. and african americans were excluded from private clubs for a long time (still are) so i mean...it just seems obvious. it isn't that they CAN'T learn to swim. its that they don't have the same opportunities. i don't see a lot of awesome public swimming pools in impoverished areas.

Quote :

"The minority swimming gap has deep roots in America's racial history. For decades during the 20th century, many pools were segregated, and relatively few were built to serve black communities."

yep.

5/2/2008 12:39:21 AM

^^ i think it was referring to his decision to play on his raft despite his inability . . . good catch on bad wording though.

^ Maybe. It'd be interesting to look at rates prior to 1950 when the majority of the South was still rural (and thus pools weren't available to the majority of whites either. I have a feeling it is as much cultural as it is economic.

5/2/2008 12:39:50 AM

OMG RACISTS!

5/2/2008 12:42:51 AM

Quote :

"i don't see a lot of awesome public swimming pools in impoverished areas. "

Maybe not around here, but they exist. When I took a lifeguarding class back in highschool our instructor had guarded at a public pool where it was predominately black people in it. He said the worse thing about it was one day a little girl had gone under, but she was on the bottom of the pool on a black lane line. He said it took forever to find her. I don't remember if she drowned or was resuscitated.

5/2/2008 12:42:57 AM

Quote :

" despite his inability to swim? seems like his inability to swim would cause drowning "

'

you read that like a stupid

5/2/2008 12:43:46 AM

i used to teach swimming lessons. it's pretty close to true.

5/2/2008 12:43:48 AM

lol,

black people are scared of dogs too

my gf called me racist when i said that shit last year, until our movers and the ups man and the mailman (all afro-american) came by

all were scared of our golden retriever puppy (wtf) who is scared of a golden retriever!

lol




i told her that my assertion was purely observational.

But it has proven true ever time. Black people do not like dogs.

[Edited on May 2, 2008 at 12:45 AM. Reason : ]

5/2/2008 12:43:50 AM

Quote :

"black people are scared of dogs too my gf called me racist when i said that shit last year, until our movers and the ups man and the mailman (all afro-american) came by all were scared of our golden retriever puppy (wtf) who is scared of a golden retriever! "

DAMN NATURE YOU SCARY!


My mom has to lock the dog in the crate when the maid comes to the house.

5/2/2008 12:45:29 AM

a lot of the black people i came into contact with as a child seemed really scared of cats

5/2/2008 12:46:53 AM

it is uncanny

i didnt even want to think about it, i try to not exacerbate stereotypes but damn

my gf keeps calling me out on it, and i keep pwning that attitude (and that ass)

5/2/2008 12:47:01 AM

IT DOESN'T INVOLVE A BALL.

[/thread]

(sorry, had to be done)

5/2/2008 12:47:45 AM

dnl,

i was going to make this thread, but it was a couple hours old on cnn, so i figd someone had gotten to it,


hahahahhaaha

wet seal ftw

5/2/2008 12:49:50 AM

I might be off base here, but many blacks don't vote Republican

hamirite?

5/2/2008 12:50:43 AM

5/2/2008 12:50:49 AM

^ I remember seeing that a while ago.

5/2/2008 12:51:47 AM

I remember posting that a while ago

5/2/2008 12:52:51 AM

Quote :

"well it seems obvious that it would correlate to the parents income. belonging to a private pool/swim club is expensive. and african americans were excluded from private clubs for a long time (still are) so i mean...it just seems obvious. it isn't that they CAN'T learn to swim. its that they don't have the same opportunities. i don't see a lot of awesome public swimming pools in impoverished areas. "

5/2/2008 12:52:56 AM

republicans are fucking stupid too

capitalism = yea!

government = gay

i guess my money is more important than my views on abortions

go mccain (but really, ron paul is the man)

5/2/2008 12:53:37 AM

^^Yahtzee.

[Edited on May 2, 2008 at 12:55 AM. Reason : .]

[Edited on May 2, 2008 at 12:57 AM. Reason : fuck Bingo]

5/2/2008 12:54:43 AM

god i cant believe people actually prefer mccain over obama...like that literally boggles my mind

5/2/2008 12:55:32 AM

<<<<<<<part of the 58 percent

5/2/2008 12:55:58 AM

^^

Josh, if I was you, Id vote for Obama too

good luck with that

5/2/2008 1:00:09 AM

i just dont get what people expect mccain to do when hes in office thats gonna make any kind of change that will make the world significantly better

5/2/2008 1:03:39 AM

inner city swimming lessons is clearly the answer you are looking for.

5/2/2008 1:07:09 AM

Quote :

"At 2 p.m. amusement park supervisor J. E. Cotton, was attempting to get the Negro youths, all male, to vacate the premises."

Cotton? Cotton? LOL


You know, it's sad that people who think like that are still alive today.

5/2/2008 1:08:43 AM

yeah i found out the other day jessie helms isnt dead

5/2/2008 1:09:54 AM

jesus fucking christ josh

vote for obama

you will get change

we aren't sure what that change will be, but dammit, it will be some change

and dammit some change is what we need dammit

5/2/2008 1:11:38 AM

why are u so hesitant?

5/2/2008 1:12:35 AM

From the article:

Quote :

"One of the key participants is black freestyle star Cullen Jones, who hopes to boost his role-model status by winning a medal this summer at the Beijing Olympics."

Just FYI: Cullen Jones is an NCSU grad.

5/2/2008 1:12:54 AM

i bet he votes for obama

change bitches

motherfucking change

5/2/2008 1:13:55 AM

as

opposed

to

what

????

5/2/2008 1:16:41 AM

as opposed to no change

dude

change, can you imagine, real change, real fucking change?

5/2/2008 1:20:25 AM

lemme get soem change son, it's like a buck fitty to get in dat shwimmin pool. ima jsut hang round the shallow end holllerin at bitches. fuck that diving board.. mutha fucka bout gon snap his neck on the shit. damn he did a whirly twirl. lemme try a cannonball

5/2/2008 1:23:45 AM

see you cant take these conservative wackos seriously...they are like cynical or something

5/2/2008 1:26:02 AM

5/2/2008 1:49:54 AM

Quote :

"i just dont get what people expect mccain to do when hes in office thats gonna make any kind of change that will make the world significantly better"

God Obama has you brainwashed, what little brain you have.

I love it though....Obama spouts a few words here and there mixed in with the word CHANGE like 20 times and he is God and all the followers wet themselves.

5/2/2008 2:29:57 AM

Quote :

"well it seems obvious that it would correlate to the parents income. "

I learned to swim in a lake. It cost $0.00. Well, if you added the Fun Dip they sold at the 7-11 down the street, maybe $1.00 each time we walked over to the lake

5/2/2008 3:07:12 AM