Time to turn virtual ideas into action on black history
OCTOBER was Black History Month and, at the age of 22, I am really beginning to realise just how much my heritage means to me. I was on a sponsor’s day with some other mixed-race and black athletes recently and we were discussing the subject and how we remember it not being included much on the curriculum when we were at school.
In this day and age, a lot of schools still don’t really teach much about black history when we are kids – I can only recall studying things like the two world wars in history class.
But the Black Lives Matter movement has put black people front and centre of the world’s news agenda this year and nowhere is that more true than in the world of sport.
This really feels like the year when we have all begun to start talking about black lives and black history, and it seems to me this is not a passing trend.
The conversations started by tragedies such as the death of George Floyd in the USA in May and with the world only interacting behind screens due to the pandemic, more and more people are aware these things are happening in the world.
We have to be brave as a society and not shy away from them. We must be aware and not in denial.
People know about racism but it is easy to turn a blind eye. It is important we all speak up when something racist is said or done.
For me personally, I have probably been quite lucky as someone with quite fair skin that I have not suffered much in the way of racial abuse in my life. It takes people a while to realise I am mixed race.
There has just been the odd subtle comment and things like having extra checks at the airport when flying into certain places. Nothing major.
Climbing is not a sport as diverse as something like football – I can reel off
in seconds the names of black/mixedrace climbers I can think of worldwide. Therefore the impact of the BLM movement has been a bit more subtle, with a focus being on educating people about the racism some black people face in day-to-day life and improving the attractiveness of the sport to the groups underrepresented within it.
A lot of top climbers are using their platform on social media channels to inspire change by sharing books and podcasts on the subject. Without any competitions this year, the majority of
the response to the BLM movement has been virtual.
I haven’t competed during the coronavirus pandemic but hope to be at the Olympic qualifier in Moscow later this month, so it will be interesting to see how the athletes will acknowledge the movement there.
I hope our sport is able to turn our virtual gestures into something more impactful at events to show support for the BLM movement. I’ve been so inspired by the actions of other sportsmen and women during the last few months that I’d like to join them
in some way. Race should not be just about politics – it can be about young, talented athletes taking a stand against what is going on in the world.
I am getting more comfortable in being someone who has a voice on behalf of girls and mixed-race kids who maybe don’t. I can share some of the experiences I had as a child and hope one day we will be talking about just how much change has taken place and how we recognise black history on a wider scale.
For now, I will just keep working, on and off the climbing wall, to do my bit.
I can only recall learning about two world wars in history class at school