I use the word myth loosely, because the numbers bear out that Black people are mostly non-swimmers. Those of us who do swim are still working on that pesky drowning rate. Or not.

But I do take issue with this article I just read from Essence.com. I don’t know why I expected more, but when this is the stuff that turns up in a google search on black swimming, you just want to throw your hands up and say, “really?”

Black women don’t swim because it makes their hair ugly, the article says. Then it goes onto say that ugly hair is more than just a cosmetic issue, and more victimization jargon, etc., etc.

I would have bought that argument back in the day, but have you ever seen what chlorine does to white hair? Turns it green, sometimes. Strips it, makes it stringy, you name it.

Chlorine does not discriminate.

So you take a few extra precautions with your hair and you move on. Do you let that put your life at risk? Is the trade-off worth it?

I don’t buy that argument for our lack of swim skills. It is superficial and weak. The real answer is more entrenched than even hair issues.

Generational fear is difficult to overcome. And it hides behind issues like hair and racism. You have to face it head on if you’re going to learn to swim and reverse the tragic drowning rate.

Are we willing to move the dialog towards courage and freedom? Or do we keep it on the level of stereotypes and superficiality?

I had to take this video down because four videos playing simultaneously is more than a bit much. Here’s a link to the page where I found all four videos. Enjoy, and let me know what you think.

Jim Ellis, the Philadelphia coach featured in the movie, Pride, has a new reason for pride. He has replaced his dilapidated facility at the Philadelphia Department of Recreation with a beautiful new facility. Ellis accomplished so much with so little; there is no doubt he can accomplish his goal of teaching everyone to swim in this new pool.

My daughter came home from lifeguarding yesterday complaining she had to get in the water.

There are more children at the Y during spring break, and my daughter ran into a non-swimmer. The young black girl jumped in the pool and didn’t know what to do when she found herself drifting away from the wall. She asked the lifeguard, (my daughter), for flotation devices. My daughter gave her some noodles, and soon discovered that the girl did not know how to use them.

The non-swimmer found herself stuck on the lane line with her feet flying out from underneath herself. She screamed bloody murder until my daughter jumped in and rescued her.

The poor girl gripping the lane line, clueless as to what to do–it reminded me of a hapless kitty suddenly finding themselves in the water.

The girl left the pool, embarrassed. I hope that’s not her last time in the water. A few swim lessons can de-catify the scariest pool visitors.

Here in America, swimming is subculture. Many recognize its importance of a life skill, and they take steps to equip their children with swim skills. But where to get lessons is often word of mouth, underground information.

Maybe you return to the place where you learned to swim. I did, but, temporary as swim teachers can be, everything had changed in the almost 20 years since I’d learned to swim. If you come from generations of non-swimmers, maybe you go to the Y, the one place that does advertise swim lessons. Maybe their way of teaching doesn’t actually get your child the swim skills. I don’t know how many years I took Y lessons and still didn’t know how to swim!

There is probably any number of good swim instructors in your area. Maybe they come out to private pools and offer private lessons. Maybe they’re at the country club, or the hospital, University, city pool.

THEY SHOULD ADVERTISE! Apparently, that’s what swim teachers do in Australia. Swimming is much more esteemed over there, too. It seems a small step to raise the level of swim awareness and appreciation in this country. And didn’t we invent commercials, anyway?

My husband gave our cat her first bath last night. He had to gently talk her out of climbing out of the tub and bolting for the nearest corner.

He also had to hold her firmly, and cut her nails beforehand.

The cat cried pitifully the whole time anyway, and desperately tried to escape the whole time.

She reminded me of black folks and water. I could see her rationalizing in her little cat brain how she’s a cat! And they don’t do water, and it works for them. They stay away from water because they’re afraid of it, so they stay away…and so on and so on.

And, it’s so cold when you get out! And, you messed up my hair!

There’s one big difference between people and cats, though. Cats already know how to swim.