Language issues is fair enough, yeah they should learn english but given that a large number of people haven't, speaking Spanish or Vietnamese or Haitian Creole is going to be an asset for anyone seeking a job.

There is actually a big problem with swimming in the African American community, the numbers (forget what they are, too lazy to look them up) of them who can swim are very low. There's theories that this dates back to the era of white-only pools, or that it is caused by the complicated hairstyles that are ruined by water. In any case, many can't swim. So they are going to have a hard time recruiting lifeguards of color.

I think the attitude of the swim coach is great. Sounds like that team is all about learning to swim, which is a good thing. Not every after school activity needs to be hugely competitive... getting kids to have fun exercising is a better goal than some swim meet IMO.

I worked as a lifeguard years ago, at a public pool, and one of the things that was required was swimming skills. In fact, most of the lifeguards were recruited mostly from the city's swim team, once the swimmers reached 18. Call me crazy, but I think swimming ability is way more important than speaking a certain language.

Years ago I had neighbor who is black and we would all visit at one of the other neighbors' house who had a pool. I always took my girls swimming and I asked her one day why she never went swimming. He answer was "Girl, don't you know black folks don't swim?" I really had no idea. She did say it takes way to long to get her hair straight and chlorine is very harsh on their hair. This was 20 years ago, and I can still hear her saying those words and it still cracks me up.

Trying to help a drowning person can be very, very difficult, because all they want is air. For which they will climb on top of you and push you under the water.

If you are not a confident swimmer, and if you are not physically strong enough to overpower a panic-driven victim, there will be two drowning victims instead of one.

My father had a theory regarding why black people can't swim. In Africa, their ancestral home, all the waterholes and rivers were infested with crocodiles. Those blacks interested in swimming didn't live long enough to develop the skill, and thus swimming never became popular with blacks. Since only the fast blacks survived their encounters with the crocodiles, and all the slow blacks were eaten, this explains why blacks make such great runners.

As valid as any other theory I've ever heard. He was able to propose this theory in a college sociology class in 1974. Such a thing probably wouldn't be possible today; he'd be expelled.

"We will work with you in your swimming abilities," Boyle says.

So, they'll accept weak swimmers with strong language skills, but won't work with the strong swimmers on their language skills?

'cause language is really the skillset you want in a lifeguard.

roadgeek: That's a ridiculous and horrible theory. You don't inherit the ability to swim via ancestral evolution. You either learn it or you don't.

I misread the first time... I thought the lady recruiting people was recruiting for the swim team, not for the lifeguards. Yeah, lifeguards should know how to swim. I can see back-up staff just knowing CPR, but someone has to jump in and pull the thrashing drowing person out of the pool.

Rick Moran is confused. The Red Cross Lifeguard Certification program he links to clearly states that passing certain swimming requirements is a prerequisite:

http://www.redcross.org/take-a-class/program-highlights/lifeguarding#lifeguarding

It takes about 24-30 hours of class time to learn first aid, CPR, injury prevention and all the rest. When you start with candidates who are strong swimmers, you can take them through the classroom material and then put them to work right away. Turning a poor swimmer into a strong swimmer can take a long time. Some people won't make it if they take all year.

"The kids in the pool are all white and every lifeguard is black or Hispanic, and we don't like that"

The terrible optics of that statement are clear to everybody, so why is it OK the other way around?

Martin;

"The kids in the pool are all white and every lifeguard is black or Hispanic, and we don't like that"

You took the words right out of my mouth. I have heard so many folks say what the original article said - "too many whites" etc. and somehow those saying it don't relaize how stupid and bigoted they sound.

P.S. Roadgeek, I do hope that was a (very tasteless) joke on your part. I mean, really, that's why some of the world's fastest runners come from Kenya? Because of all the crocodiles?

I wasn't joking. My father brought this theory up in his college sociology glass in the early 70's, and the class had a serious discussion of the merits of his theory. It was an accredited university; they had books and a dean and all that other collegiate stuff. Make of it what you will.

Of course that was 40 years ago, so perspectives do shift.

Andrew: "You don't inherit the ability to swim via ancestral evolution. You either learn it or you don't."

Yeah, kind of like basketball, boxing, track and gymnastics, right? Everyone is born with the ability to excel at any athletic endeavor... not.

I think genetics might play an important role.

Thanks Martin,
I had a feeling something was BS, you pointed out perfectly.

Now back to roadgeek: this new measure will help the darwinsim implied in your dad theory if the lifesaver is also from kenya.....
(just joking, but when something is so stupid...)

BTW, I am surprised that such a low-level protection like the question ask is enough to stop spam!!!

As valid as any other theory I've ever heard. He was able to propose this theory in a college sociology class in 1974. Such a thing probably wouldn't be possible today; he'd be expelled.

Posted by: roadgeek at April 5, 2013 6:41 AM
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How is it anywhere as close to valid as the fact that swimming lessons cost money and therefore poor people may consider such a thing to be a LUXURY?

Sure, I know that one can learn to swim without paying for it - IF one lives near a body of water where there's no entrance fee - but it's still pretty time-consuming for the child's parent, and many poor parents just don't have the time.

A lot more on that - remember that 2010 tragedy in Louisiana?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-11172054

Excerpts:

....."We would like it to be like seatbelts and bicycle helmets," says Ms Anderson.

But the situation in the US can vary hugely even within a single state.

Olympic gold medallist Cullen Jones is a spokesman for swimming initiatives Unlike the UK, where learning to swim is enshrined in the national curriculum except in Scotland, the ultimate responsibility in the US often lies with parents......

......."Fear of drowning or fear of injury was really the major variable," says Prof Carol Irwin, a sociologist from the University of Memphis, who led the study for USA Swimming.

Typically, those children who could not swim also had parents who could not swim.

"Parents who don't know how to swim are very likely to pass on not knowing how to swim to their children," says Ms Anderson.

In focus groups for the study, Prof Irwin said many black parents who could not swim evinced sentiments like: "My children are never going to learn to swim because I'm scared they would drown."

The parents' very fear of their children drowning was making that fate more likely.

The major reason behind the problem could lie in the era of segregation says Prof Jeff Wiltse, author of Contested Waters: A Social History of Swimming Pools in America.

"The history of discrimination… has contributed to the drowning and swimming rates," says Prof Wiltse......

And, from a Feb. article, "Who Says Black People Don’t Swim?":

(comment by Nic)

Bryant Gumbel had a really good segment on Real Sports featuring Cullen Jones talking about this. One big factor (in addition to pool access) is the role that fear plays. Parents who can’t swim and fear water wont’ let their kids in the pool either. My parents couldn’t swim but made sure we were in the pool learning as toddlers. And while they never got to be good swimmers, they did take lessons as adults.

Cullen apparently learned to swim after nearly drowning, but that is also the kind of situation that can make parents of kids scared about water, even though it is precisely why you should learn.

Black children drown much more than children of other races b/c of this fear of the water and higher numbers of kids who can’t swim. B/c unfortunately, not being able to swim doesn’t keep people away from water (b/c not all non-swimmers are afraid and I don’t think water safety is taught unless you learn to swim).

They had some parents of children/teenagers who had drowned and they all said that they didn’t take their kids to swim lessons b/c they were afraid of the water themselves.

We do need to break the cycle and I think Cullen works with black kids to get more of them swimming.

(end)

Gee, lenona - I had NO IDEA that the only place anyone could learn to swim was in a class that cost money!

Does anyone have any idea whatsoever WHY there are white people, who appeared 'way late in human history - or Asians?

Those are evolutionary changes, which the politically correct must deny every second of the day.

I learned to swim for free by being thrown in a lake.

Almost beat the state record for 100yd breaststroke my senior year, missed by 2/100ths of a second

My youngest brother could swim and hold his breath for over a minute before he could walk, also for free

"How is it anywhere as close to valid as the fact that swimming lessons cost money and therefore poor people may consider such a thing to be a LUXURY? "

Where I live there's a county-owned like with swimming and diving facilities. Daily admission is $1 and they have free swimming lessons throughout the summer. Hardly any minorities take advantage of it. I leave the rest as an exercise to the reader.

Where I live there's a county-owned like with swimming and diving facilities. Daily admission is $1 and they have free swimming lessons throughout the summer.

Posted by: Cousin Dave at April 8, 2013 7:30 AM
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You didn't say how common that is. I take it it isn't.

Gee, lenona - I had NO IDEA that the only place anyone could learn to swim was in a class that cost money!
________________________

You didn't read the next paragraph, did you?
_________________________

Does anyone have any idea whatsoever WHY there are white people, who appeared 'way late in human history - or Asians?

Those are evolutionary changes, which the politically correct must deny every second of the day.

Posted by: Radwaste at April 7, 2013 5:39 AM
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From what I've always heard, at least with regard to white people, when you move farther north, the sun isn't as intense, so protective dark skin is not needed. (This is why whites - especially blonds and redheads - are more susceptible to skin cancer than non-whites when they expose themselves to intense sunlight.)

Who denies any of that? No one I've heard of.