Open Letter on Diversity in Our Sport

[RiderRay]

I thought I just made it clear that I agree with you. There are many weaknesses in our police departments that need to be addresses.

 

[Tricia]

Folks, while this discussion has been respectful to one another, there are some posts that have been either edited or deleted that were taking it down a rabbit hole.

Please steer this back to how it relates to skiing.
More importantly, how can we make a difference?

Thank you.

 

[crgildart]

I thought I just made it clear that I agree with you. There are many weaknesses in our police departments that need to be addresses.

Your kid's not the only one of us who has had trouble with vindictive authorities. Now, imagine what it's like when instead of previous history and them knowing you instead they target you as a stranger simply due to the color of your skin. After that happens over and over.. you're likely to avoid places without other folks you know and trust or at least look like you. It's risky to venture in to what might be hostile territory or at least unfamiliar and potentially risky. However, the ski club delivers that safety zone in numbers. It's on us to confirm that ski resorts are safe from those other types of problems elsewhere so folks feel comfortable coming solo too.

 

[RiderRay]

About 10 years ago a friend of mine invited me to go skiing with him and some friends to VT. I was the only white guy. We had a great time except for the fact that I noticed that the service in the restaurants was much different from what I was used to. We waited a long time for menus, to have our orders taken, get drink refills. When I had enough I went to get up and speak to the manager and one of the guys asked me not to as it would only lead to confrontation and would make them look bad. I respected their wishes but it opened my eyes to the prejudice that is still very much alive. I don't know what the answer is, I guess we do have a long way to go. What's really sad is that the servers were young people.

 

[ski otter 2]

That’s exactly what the protests are about, dealing with remnants of what happened generations ago. We have to carry water on both shoulders and deal with both issues

I really love and find solace in skiing, when all else fails especially. And I'm white.

But my black family members I could not get interested in skiing for long. And I was too poor financially to create a tour de force to encourage them in that direction, to my great regret. If I had the dough, I'd do that now. Even though for them so many financial needs are more pressing.

I'm maybe too old and damaged to be the one saying this stuff, but....

The thing is, it's not just "remnants." Even if it is a carryover, it is an almost routine part of the experience of a great many if not most people of color, especially black people, today, including through the under the surface but violent dominance of White Supremacy, still, dominant economically, concentrated also in the police, North and South, historically and now (still). In this instance (Black Lives Matter), historically and now structurally, the legal systems were rigged - and still are - in order to criminalize black men especially, and force them into peonage in the South (still), or sub-minimum wages as labeled criminals, North and South. To get around the Fourteenth Amendment, specifically - still; whether we happen to be aware of this or not. Since the rise of Jim Crow; since the Civil War. And right now, when the U.S.A. has roughly twice as many incarcerated people as any other country, I've read repeatedly.

 

[Snowfan]

I love people of every color. They have so much to offer it blows my mind and breaks my heart to see the continuation of disrespect and prejudice. I long for the day when we as a nation stand up for the wrongs we have done and somehow, some way, recompense them. The 2 groups that sting my heart the most.....Native Americans and African Americans. We owe them.

 

[karlo]

What I'm asking is why you're not just as upset about the other lives?

From your own posts, it’s clear you understand how different the issues are You assume that one cannot be upset at both, or that the response to both must be the same.

it's not just "remnants."

Yes, I know. I couldn’t come up with the more appropriate word. Maybe it’s two words. “continuing legacy”?

We owe them.

I think we need to be careful about what “owe them” means. It’s not monetary. I think “them” is “us”; we owe it to ourselves, to enable the development of the most talented amongst us, in skiing and in everything else. How many inventors, entrepreneurs, artists, athletes have we lost because we haven’t done that? We have an ever more competitive world and a untapped asset is right under our noses. Are we willing to nurture and develop all of us?

 

[ski otter 2]

Your kid's not the only one of us who has had trouble with vindictive authorities. Now, imagine what it's like when instead of previous history and them knowing you instead they target you as a stranger simply due to the color of your skin. After that happens over and over.. you're likely to avoid places without other folks you know and trust or at least look like you. It's risky to venture in to what might be hostile territory or at least unfamiliar and potentially risky. However, the ski club delivers that safety zone in numbers. It's on us to confirm that ski resorts are safe from those other types of problems elsewhere so folks feel comfortable coming solo too.

^^^^^^^^This. My black family members, especially the boys, since elementary school have had to carefully map out their comings and goings - to school, friends, the 7-11, etc. - specifically to avoid running into the police. To keep from being routinely hassled - but also traumatized.

For me, the thing is, I truly love and find solace in skiing. But my black family members are too harried, injured and afraid, and too poor, to want to do it. There is so much injustice int this world, and they are forced to deal with so much I and other white people have never had to notice, including from the police and the way this country is structurally. Beyond anything I could have imagined, as a white person.

 

[Yo Momma]

Using skiing as a conduit for conversation is brilliant. Thank you everyone for sharing your stories and Vision. The honesty and desire to avoid descending into chaos is palpable here on Pugski. That is our strength here. Curiosity and discussion lay the groundwork for understanding, w/ friendships being a major part of the desired result. Those friendships lead to experiences that can over time, enhance perspectives. That is the role skiing can play in the broader equation. Realize that fostering those cross-cultural friendships may be a daunting task requiring an incredible amount of patience. It takes time to break down hundreds of years of cultural conditioning. Skiing has the potential to accelerate that process and be a catalyst that allows all parties to focus on fostering "Togetherness". Through this medium we could ultimately achieve the respect desired and work towards a place in Time where we can, as @RiderRay says " ... receive the rights that the Constitution of this great country guarantees us "

 

[SBrown]

Curiosity and discussion lay the groundwork for understanding, w/ friendships being a major part of the desired result.

I like this statement, a lot!

 

[Nancy Hummel]

Using skiing as a conduit for conversation is brilliant. Thank you everyone for sharing your stories and Vision. The honesty and desire to avoid descending into chaos is palpable here on Pugski. That is our strength here. Curiosity and discussion lay the groundwork for understanding, w/ friendships being a major part of the desired result. Those friendships lead to experiences that can over time, enhance perspectives. That is the role skiing can play in the broader equation. Realize that fostering those cross-cultural friendships may be a daunting task requiring an incredible amount of patience. It takes time to break down hundreds of years of cultural conditioning. Skiing has the potential to accelerate that process and be a catalyst that allows all parties to focus on fostering "Togetherness". Through this medium we could ultimately achieve the respect desired and work towards a place in Time where we can, as @RiderRay says " ... receive the rights that the Constitution of this great country guarantees us "

Thank you for this. I only thing I know is that I have much to learn and intend to do so.

 

[Yo Momma]

Thank you for this. I only thing I know is that I have much to learn and intend to do so.

Exactly! One of the primary asks is that we all be students during this process. There is a desperate need for development of mechanisms of interaction. In the absence of those "mechanisms" it makes it harder to dissect ideas like those in the original post of @RiderRay down to a place where we are in agreement. The ideal is to let go of the established rhetoric, detach from it... listen w/ that 3rd ear, research and accept our history and be willing to divest ourselves PERSONALLY of oppressive systems. That leads to questions around "What are oppressive systems and how do they manifest w/in our infrastructure?" That, is the loaded question that will either tear us apart or ultimately bring us together...

 

[crgildart]

All right, all right... But not the dentists!

 

[Yo Momma]

All right, all right... But not the dentists!

View attachment 105029

Just retired the "Soapbox"!!!!!!!

 

[pipestem]

I am fairly proud of pugski for being able to have this discussion. I grew up in a location where the overt racism of the local ski club turned me off the sport for decades. Once I came back, I remembered why I loved it, but those origins have always nagged at me and over the last few weeks moreso, of course. Skiing will be better for all when it is more diverse. I wish I had been at A-basin that weekend.

 

[Tricia]

Just retired the "Soapbox"!!!!!!!

While we don't encourage soapboxing, I'm not reading your posts as such.
I'm learning much.

 

[Tricia]

I am fairly proud of pugski for being able to have this discussion. I grew up in a location where the overt racism of the local ski club turned me off the sport for decades. Once I came back, I remembered why I loved it, but those origins have always nagged at me and over the last few weeks moreso, of course. Skiing will be better for all when it is more diverse. I wish I had been at A-basin that weekend.

We are there every year at the beginning of May. I probably won't remember to reach out to you personally when we start announcing the dates, but keep your eye's on the Meet UP area under resorts.
You'd like this crowd.

 

[Moose32]

My inspiration is this news story out of Rochester, NY, Black or White, Relax and Have a Beer: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/brad-paisely-have-a-beer-friends-rochester-new-york/

Pittsford, NY. No better place to grow up.

More relevant, without economic access to skiing, diversity will never occur. Any discussions beyond that are looking at important but tangential issues.

So Tiger should start with Vail resorts and ticket prices. Not starter packs, but daily ticket pricess. Why are prices in US ~4x than top places in the Alps?

Daily Lift Tickets:
Vail: ~$209
Wilmot: ~$65
Kitzbuhel: ~$65 USD

 

[Yo Momma]

Exactly! One of the primary asks is that we all be students during this process. There is a desperate need for development of mechanisms of interaction. In the absence of those "mechanisms" it makes it harder to dissect ideas like those in the original post of @RiderRay down to a place where we are in agreement. The ideal is to let go of the established rhetoric, detach from it... listen w/ that 3rd ear, research and accept our history and be willing to divest ourselves PERSONALLY of oppressive systems. That leads to questions around "What are oppressive systems and how do they manifest w/in our infrastructure?" That, is the loaded question that will either tear us apart or ultimately bring us together...

Kinda stretching to link this to skiing but in the interest of expanding our sport... Insider info... like stock tips! When skiing, or desiring to discuss skiing and you come across, or wish to open the skiing world to more Blacks... in the continued interest of promoting Conversation and Education here is a video series that will teach all of us about overcoming our hurdles. I've learned so much by watching these short focused outtakes. So far it's a 4 pt series and expanding. I'm also reading as if I were still back at Dartmouth! If you would like a list of recommended books feel free to PM me. Everyone at their own pace and thanks for making Pugski a focal point for truly ALL things skiing related including working to diversify our sport!

Keep these discussions in your mind during those interactions;

 

[Steve]

Very good video. I've spent my life thinking about these issues, it's so hard to explain to people who haven't, to people who claim "I'm not racist" and "blacks have equality now. It's in their hands to excel in life."

Thanks for sharing.