What would you do if your child was a victim of racism?
Parents of children who attend a day camp has filed a lawsuit against the swim club in Philadelphia accused of refusing pool memberships to their minority children due to racism.
According to MSNBC, the lawsuit demands unspecified damages on behalf of several unnamed children and parents.
When the minorities were kicked out of the pool on June 29, it made national headlines and caused the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and the United States’ highest-profile black swimmer, Olympic gold medalist Cullen Jones to speak out. Here’s what happened:
The Creative Steps camp had arranged for 65 mostly black and Hispanic children to swim each Monday afternoon at the gated Huntingdon Valley club, which is on a leafy hillside in a village straddling two overwhelmingly white townships.
But after the group arrived June 29, camp director Alethea Wright said, several children reported hearing racial comments and some swim club members pulled their children out of the pool.
The camp’s $1,950 was refunded a few days later.
The president of the swim club’s board of directors, John Duesler, has said the decision was made because there were too many children in the pool and the situation was unsafe, not because of racial concerns.
Duesler’s explanation and apology apparently hasn’t been very convincing. Parents of the children still believe they were victims of racism.
Do you think they were discriminated against or could safety have been a legitimate concern?
Despite an invitation from the swim club for the children to come back to the pool, the parents of the 65 children are moving forward with the lawsuit.
“We commend the club for making that offer,” said Attorney Brian R. Mildenberg. “If (the parents are) satisfied with that offer, then we’d be prepared to recommend to withdraw the lawsuit.”
But he added that at least one parent wanted to pursue the lawsuit regardless.
Should parents still move forward with the lawsuit? What type of action should be taken against the swim club if they indeed were discriminatory?
If you were a parent of one of the children, how would you deal with the situation?
Wow. I didnt know a wad of cash would make it appear as though the racism didnt happen. And were they kicked out or did the kids hear comments from other patrons? If its a case of rich whities not wanting to swim with black kids, is it the clubs fault? I mean the white parents have the right to keep their kids out of the pool. As horrible as that is, its still not the clubs fault.
MONEY MONEY MONEY!!!!! Thats all this is. I was on vacation last week. I went to an area where my skin color made me a minority. (MY FAULT!!!!!!!) I heard more than a dozen comments, but Im not suing the city. Stay where youre accepted and there wont be problems. If you choose not to, (like I did), you deal with the consequences.
Having grown up in Castle Point, being the only hispanic-white child in the 6th grade out of all 3 classes, I can say that I grew up around alot of minorities. A lot of black children, are very excited, rambunctious, and loud. I could very well see people who are NOT EXPOSED to non-white races or do not expose their children to non-white races, feeling their safety is threatened by the presence of 65 non-white children who may not have had the priviledge of swimming at an in-ground swimming pool very often, or ever.
HOWEVER, if a daycare brought 65 white children who may not have had the priviledge of swimming at an in-ground swimming pool very often, if ever, and they were very excited, rambunctious and loud, it may equally be perceived as a safety threat as well. If this were actually the case - it was the action and not the color, then it’s not racism, it’s really social class-ism.
Opportunistic money grab is all this is. Why are “historically” black colleges, cemeteries, etc., okay? Context is needed here.
BB - Wow, rationalize much? It has been my experience that most CHILDREN are very excited, rambunctious and loud. If you were quiet and subdued and a shy child, should those “very excited, rambunctious and loud” black children that you grew up with conclude that all hispanic-white children are like that also?
My issue with your comment is that you rationalized the actions by the whites as a social/class issue, but then you speculated that the black children must have been very excited, rambuncitous and loud (although there are really no facts indicating this) because that is just how black kids are.
Do you not see an issue with your analysis?
I do believe, from what I’ve read elsewhere, that Creative Steps has a history of stirring up trouble for the media to pick up. However, the law is on their side here. A private swim club can exclude anyone they want IF they are strictly private. This one - as many others do - allows non-members to swim by paid reservation. These kids had paid reservations to swim, they can’t legally be barred from the pool.
It’s times like this it pays to have the Rev Al on speed dial.
Scott,
Historically black colleges and black cemeteries, etc. were established becuase blacks were not allowed to be educated at other institutions or buried at other cemeteries.
Are you suggesting that from the end of slavery until Brown v. Board, the Civil Rights Act and the Voting Rights Act, black people should have just sat there waiting on the laws to change?
That could not possibly be what you are suggesting, right?
And are you suggesting that those institutions should now close because
other institutions are no longer permitted by law to deny blacks access??
Praise the Lord! Thank you whitie! Cha-Ching! Oh - we don’t mean that racism is profitable. Our bad.
Back when I was a youngster back in the 70’s when I was in school I was one of the few whites there.Being called a honkie was a daily event then.But I dare not use the “n” word in return,because if I did I know a vacious axx kicking will have come from my way.This racial harassment goes both ways.
Racism or not, the kids had paid and booked their time to swim.
Pushing them out, without trying to work out a resolution is unacceptable.
I’m sure that Creative Steps is a reasonable group of people and would have been more than willing to work something out, in order to make everyone happy. Or, perhaps, they might have even amicably withdrawn.
Lack of communication and effort, on behalf of the swim club. Too little, too late.