It was pretty challenging for me to write an outdoors column this week — my heart just wasn’t in it.
In the past, I have written despite the loss of beloved pets, despite job loss, and despite injuries and illnesses. I’ve written through political upheaval, school shootings, natural disasters and other tragedies.
Most of these stressful and distressing events never crossed from my real life into my outdoors column. Through it all, the outdoors has existed for me in a kind of happy bubble. I would walk, bike, paddle or ski away, leaving my troubles behind — at least for a while — and finding solace in the beauty of nature. But lately, I have felt so moved by the pain of fellow citizens that it seems irresponsible to keep those two worlds separate.
The recent stories of racial violence in Minneapolis and elsewhere are appalling on a basic human level, but they also hit close to home because we are raising a child of color. As much as I long to insulate our daughter from the turmoil engulfing our nation, I know it’s important to educate her about the world and its many challenges, and to prepare her for the day she faces racism herself.
On our adventures, most of the other people we see enjoying the outdoors are white. The absence of other faces of color — faces beyond our daughter’s — has troubled and saddened me. As she grows older, I worry that she won’t feel at home in the woods if she doesn’t see people there that look like her. Even worse, she could face prejudice in the place that has brought her parents so much happiness.
Unfortunately, it is not a far-fetched concern. A few weeks ago, a black man birding in New York City’s Central Park asked a white woman to leash her illegally loose dog; she responded by calling 911 and claiming he had threatened her. It was a call that could have gotten him arrested, injured or even killed.
In response to the incident, black scientists and nature lovers organized the first Black Birders Week, five days of virtual programming. (Today is the last day.) One of the group’s main goals is “to counter the narrative that the outdoors are not the place black people should be,” organizer Corina Newsome told Audubon Magazine. Black Birders Week also hopes to educate the outdoors community about the challenges black birders face, and to encourage increased diversity in birding and conservation.
It’s one of several efforts to increase diversity in outdoor spaces or raise the profile of outdoor adventurers of color. Others include Melanin Base Camp and Outdoor Afro.
I am taking my own small steps in educating myself. It feels like there is a lot to learn. I know how to prepare our daughter to face a bear or a heavy rainstorm, but how do I prepare her for an encounter with a racist? I can teach her how to navigate with a map, but how do I teach her to navigate decisions about where, when, and with whom it’s safe to be in the outdoors?
And then — the bigger picture — I’m still learning about what I can do for the rest of our community, beyond our household. How do I personally make the world a more equitable place for all people of color, not just our own child?
Last Saturday, while protests began in nearby communities, my husband and I loaded our bikes onto the car and drove west. With everything happening, a bike ride felt frivolous. But it also felt necessary. We needed to escape for a little while — escape from social media and a litany of horrifying news.
We rode our bikes 15 miles from Amsterdam to Randall, then 15 miles back to the car. It was our daughter’s longest ride, one she completed with little complaint and no drama. If only the rest of her life would be so easy, one mile rolling by after the other under sunny skies.
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June 05, 2020 at 09:49AM
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Outdoors: Even the woods offer another reminder of world's troubles - Times Union
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