Since many African communities were located near water, most people could swim. Our ancestors respected water as a natural and spiritual resource. And this was at a time when supposedly only upper-class Europeans knew how to swim.
When they reached North Africa, the Romans were perplexed by the sight of Africans effortlessly swimming. Their art mocked and sexualized African swimmers. They trod on mosaics of Africans on their way to their pools. As the centuries passed, swimming became a recreational activity for white people and another stolen aspect of African culture.
Europeans were astounded at Africans’ swimming ability, comparing the freestyle form to mermaids and sea turtles. They believed only sea creatures could move in the water like our ancestors did. This was the kind of dehumanizing argument that was used to justify enslaving Africans.
In the United States, jealousy and racism resulted in the segregation of swimming facilities. A few decades ago, public pools and beaches were “Whites Only.” Many Black people never learned to swim because of systemic obstacles intended to keep that life-saving skill from Black people from learning. But swimming is part of our traditional culture. We can reclaim it.
Swimming has always been an African tradition. Racism has kept many of us from learning. They envied our ability to swim and did everything they could to stop us. How can we revive the African tradition of swimming?