Crossing The Lane Lines Naji Ali

When many think about people in marine sciences, and in particular shark sciences, Black folk in general and Black women in particular are not the first that spring to mind, but there is a new organization that is striving to be seen and take up space in a discipline which has been largely inaccessible to minoritized communities. We'll speak to, Jasmine Graham, co-founder, president and CEO of Minorities in Shark Sciences, about their mission, programs, ecological racism, and their efforts to dispel the myth about sharks in the Black community.

Detroit was once know as the Motor City and the birthplace of MoTown, but it was also home to one of the most thriving Black swim communities in the country, where great swim legends like Robert "Bucky" Johnson, and Clyde James plied their trade. Notable swim coaches like Carl Edwards and Clarance Gatliffe paced the decks, but like so many other rich Black swimming traditions racism, access, and lack of interest began to erode this mecca of aquatic excellence. But one man is changing that for the better. We'll speak to Coach Ja'Von Waters, Sr., head coach of the Detroit All Stars, and founder and director of Aqualyfe about Detroit's swimming past and its bright future.

As the swim community slowly begins to grapple with its legacy of racism too often those who are asked to speak about its impact on Black and Brown communities are usually adults. Most are sincere in trying to make access for learn to swim and competitive swimming more equitable and inclusive for young male, female, and non-binary youth. However, no one ever seems to ask these young people how they might envision their own future. On this episode we'll speak to twin sisters Brianna and Rachel Holmes, multi-gold medal winning junior Olympic artistic swimmers, about where they see swimming now, and how they plan on making it more welcoming for all. 

The Nile Swim Club, located in Yeadon, PA is the oldest Black-owned pool in the country. Today on a special episode of Crossing The Lane Lines, we'll hear an interview of Anthony Patterson, the president of The Nile Swim Club conducted by Victoria Prizzia, the curator of the POOL exhibit in Philadelphia, about the founding and mission of the Nile Swim club and it's impact on the Black community specifically, and the broader community in general.

Lia Thomas, a trans female swimmer on the University of Pennsylvania's Women's Swim team, has caused quite an uproar not only in the swimming world, but amongst the general public as well. Many claim that opposing Thomas' participation in women's sports has nothing to do with her being a trans athlete. However, over the last ten years, multiple states have banned trans athletes from participating in sports alongside they're cis-gender counterparts. But what's really going on with these bans? Is there a more broader agenda, and how does this tie in to the Black community in general, and the Black swim community in particular? We'll speak to Karleigh Webb, sports journalist and athlete about Thomas, the bans, and what's really going on in the broader context of this divide.

Pauline Jackson, Water Johnson, Willis Hanks, Charles Chapman, these are but a few of the accomplished marathon swimmers in the Black community, Though they are not as well known as their White counterparts such as Lynne Cox or Trudy Ederle, they were just as successful. Now we add one more name to this illustrious society of endurance athletes, Carl Richards. Richards, became the second person of African descent to cross the English Channel, and today he'll join us to talk about his successful swim, challenges of making it happen, and his hopes for other people of color to become marathon swimmers.