The discussion on Diversity in Aquatics continues. Erroll Dupplessis brought up something that I immediately scoffed at. I thought access to a pool was an irrelevant, old fashioned issue. Then I asked my husband about it.

My husband, like Mr. Duplessis, grew up in the south. Mr. Duplessis tells us that pools in the south were closed to blacks in the 1960s through the early 80s. I asked my husband about it. He remembers trying to go swimming in the 80s and being told that the pool was closed.

I am shocked and appalled. And we wonder why more black folks don’t swim. And, as they say, if you don’t know your history, you’re doomed to repeat it. Hello, Philadelphia, summer of 2009.

Naji Ali goes on to say that one of the reasons captive Africans were tied down in the hulls of the slave ships was to prevent them from jumping in the water and swimming away.

That is a powerful image and legacy, quite different from the picture of the runaway slave captured or killed by an inability to swim.

So, what can we do? We can make concerted efforts to break the cycle of non-swimming. We can sign our children up for swim lessons and swim teams. If black swimming were as widespread as say, rollerskating back in the day, or basketball now, then more of our children would become swim teachers and coaches.

I know first-hand how effective black teachers are in the pool.

In short, this problem is not our fault, but it is our responsibility. We are capable of pulling ourselves out of this hole. We need to roll up our sleeves and get to work. What work do you think we need to do?