Why Don't More Minorities Hike?
Source: thebolditalic.com
As a Bay Area native, I grew up in outdoor spaces. While hiking trails in Tilden Park in the East Bay and in the Marin Headlands in the North Bay, I gained an appreciation of and respect for natural spaces that eventually led me to visit our national parks—Yosemite being my favorite.
It was in Yosemite that I started to notice I was the only person of color during most of my visits. I would ask questions of family and friends as to why they never wanted to explore nature with me. I tried to instill in them the importance of stewardship and our natural connection to and responsibility for the land. Their responses were always the same: they didn’t feel comfortable, nor did they want to spend time where they were the only faces of color around.
With this feedback in hand, I contacted the heads of outdoor agencies, such as the National Park Service, who, in return, shared with me the work they are doing to address these matters. Hearing the park service acknowledge that a lack of diversity in outdoor spaces is, indeed, an issue only made my resolve greater to help bridge the gap between those who are currently visiting our parks and those who are not.
Race is relevant in every aspect of life, including outdoor recreation. That some people are uncomfortable engaging in a conversation about it speaks to the larger problem we face in this society— privilege and the sense of entitlement it gives rise to. Several stories about race and the outdoors have been in the news lately, but they have not been stories with a happy ending. The African American family who were attacked while camping a few weeks ago in the California foothills is just one example.
When I mention to people that, as a person of color, I often feel out of place in the outdoors, many do not understand my perspective. After all, there are no welcome mats for anyone, and open spaces are at the ready for us all. But are they really? When you visit national and state parks, seldom do you come across rangers or park staff of color, which, in itself, is a reason why many, including myself, do not feel welcome.
For me, when I’m venturing out on trails that are unfamiliar in parks that I may be visiting for the first time, I would feel more welcome if there were rangers who could not only direct me in my visit but also relate to me as a person of color. There’s something about seeing yourself in the face of another that creates a feeling of safety
Whenever I engage in this conversation, I know that some people will not agree with me, but I implore you to pay attention to other park visitors when you visit our local parks—for instance, Mt. Tam. Take note of how many people of color you come across and how many park rangers of color you make contact with. On the basis of a recent ride-along I had with a ranger there, those numbers are bleak, compared to the number of white visitors to the park.
The Golden Gate National Recreation Area, which Muir Woods is a part of, is the most visited of all the national park sites in the country. It is referred to as an “urban park” because of its proximity to a major city, yet it, too, does not attract many people of color. The reason is the same: people of color not feeling welcome in these spaces and not seeing other faces of color.
A recent Green 2.0 report speaks to this very issue and adds yet another aspect as to why diversity in the outdoors remains an issue. The report highlights the ways in which environmental organizations, many of which are here in the Bay Area, are struggling in their attempts to attract people of color to their workforces. So when you don’t see people of color in organizations that promote the idea of getting outdoors, you begin to understand how vast this problem really is.
The climate is changing, and so are the demographics of our country. What will happen when, in two to three decades, our new, non-white majority in the US doesn’t care about the environment due to a lack of involvement now?
This isn’t about acceptance or tolerance; it’s about building a relationship to help steer the future of our planet. It’s about self-preservation.
It is vital that we began to engage communities of color with respect to outdoor spaces. If communities of color are missing from outdoor spaces, they are also missing from the conversation about conservation. This is why I say, for every person of color who says they do not feel welcome in the outdoors, we’ve lost in our efforts to ensure the future of environmental protection. Every person of color who says she or he is scared to venture into open spaces because of a fear of the unknown is another voice we’ve lost in the fight to protect our endangered species. Every person of color who isn’t even aware of outdoor opportunities and the positive effects they can have on physical and mental well-being is another champion of action lost in a community that desperately needs them.
Source: thebolditalic.com
