By Tarice L.S. Gray

While at a swim meet two weeks ago in Canada, World Record Holder and 2008 US Olympic Swimmer Cullen Jones got some heartbreaking news: Another child of color had drowned in his United States. This time it was the two year old son of former NFL quarterback Randall Cunningham. The tragedy hit close to home with Jones who’s a spokesperson for the USA Swimming Make a Splash initiative, which encourages minority children to learn water safety. He explained that he had been there before.

Cullen Jones

When Jones was five years old, he almost drowned in a water park in Pennsylvania. The Gold Medal-winning athlete, who won the 4×100 relay in the 2008 Olympics, had to overcome his fear of the water to learn to swim. He said, “My mom got me into swim lessons right after that. I was kind of intimidated to start swim lessons I was definitely afraid with me almost drowning, then I started loving the sport.” The fact that his mother encouraged him to try, try again, is an unusual reaction. Most African-American parents, fearing that their child could drown, would simply keep them away from the water. That translates into some disturbing statistics. In May, the University of Memphis released a study which revealed 70% of African Americans have low or no swimming skills. That’s compared to 41% of whites. In minority communities, the drowning rate for kids is 2-3 times higher than the national average.

Carol Irwin, co-author of the study, explained part two of the study which supplemented phase one released in 2008, relied on interviews and conversations with parents to dig deeper. They concluded that fear of water was traditionally passed down through generations. In one focus group Irwin discovered one family’s secret. A daughter found out her mother kept her from the water when she was child. Irwin shared, “There was a swimming pool in the neighborhood where a few [people] in the group had learned how to swim and she said ‘where is it?’ And they said ‘it’s on this street, don’t you remember it was in our neighborhood?’ She looked at her mother and said ‘you told me there weren’t any swimming pools in our neighborhood’. And the grandmother said ‘I know. I told you that, because I was scared’”. That transfer of fear, Irwin believes, is why so many minority youth are more likely to drown.

Jones understands that fear. He acknowledges that his mother, who was most encouraging when it came to his swimming career, cannot swim. The champion admits most of his family can’t swim. Jones said, “I have so many cousins that will stand up and say ‘my cousin is an Olympic Gold Medalist!’ but they’re afraid to be in the water.”

The Make a Splash initiative with USA Swimming takes aim at the stigmas, stereotypes and fears generated by the misconceptions of swimming in minority communities. Through a national campaign and local outreach, they’re attempting to offer families an invitation to try the sport, for their own good.

Other organizations are trying similar means on a grass roots level. Shaun Anderson, co-founder of Diversity in Aquatics, is trying to open the eyes of African Americans in particular who buy into the saying ‘we don’t swim’. Anderson said, “I thought we could start to dispel the stereotype that we don’t want to do aquatic activities. If we’re all together in one place you could see that, there are black surfers, and a lot of stuff going on.” He and his partner Jay Jackson are working to bring attention to all aquatic activities African Americans are involved, and help them grow. As it stands, although swim options are increasing, many people are still in the dark about them.

One aquatic legacy that is quietly catching on is the black swim meet. Across the country, organizers have been establishing these opportunities for competition as a lure for African American children to get in the pool. In Atlanta, Washington D.C, and North Carolina, the tradition has gone on for decades. Kathy Cooper, Director for the National Black Heritage Swim Meet in North Carolina, believes their mission is to help kids learn to love and respect the water. In the meet held over Memorial Day weekend this year, 738 kids competed. Cooper said, “We have them from all levels, developmental to very experienced swimmer. We call it a championship but some of the kids when they first came could barely get across the pool.”

Patience and parental involvement is key. As a parent, Cooper taught her daughter Candace to swim when she was two-and-a-half. Now Candace competes on the collegiate level at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill.

Both Cooper and Anderson want their organizations to be viewed as inclusive not just racially, but also according to skill. They would like non-swimming parents to embrace the water as well as encourage their children to do so. But it will take some undoing. Jones warned however, despite parental fear their kids are still getting in the water. He said, “You can’t be with your kids 24 hours a day. You wouldn’t allow you kids to be in a car without a safety belt. You wouldn’t allow your kids to play football without a helmet. A lot of parents allow their kids to go to the pool and their not fully equipped with the life skills of knowing how to be safe around water.”

The Make a Splash foundation making a push to change that. According to the USA Swimming Foundation the initiative has taught more than 300,000 minority youth to swim since 2007. Their spokesman Cullen Jones calls it a major part of his life’s work. In addition to training for the 2012 Olympics this summer, he will also be touring the country assisting in swim classes with local partners in Washington D.C., Los Angeles, Oakland and New York. Jones believes the most important part about this portion of his job is saving lives.

“As long as we get to the point where no kids are drowning and every kid is water safe I’m happy.”

Tarice L.S. Gray is a freelance writer and blogger