Why is it that blacks are afraid of swimming and of large bodies of water?
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Name : Jeff, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Christian, Age : 20, City : Hays, State : KS Country : United States, Occupation : Student, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, As a white Britisher I have noticed that a lot of my compatriots "know" that black people can't swim and offer surreal explanations ranging from "Their bones are too heavy" to "They have the wrong kind of ankle joints" (who uses his ankles to swim?). I suspect the reason a large percentage of people in the black community don't swim is simple: in my generation (growing up in the '70s) there was a big campaign to get people to learn to swim, and most of us did, but if you were black in Britain then, you were part of a fairly new community, heavily outnumbered and faced prejudice. Going to a public swimming pool where you would be half-naked and surrounded by strangers would be stressful, so many blacks of my generation likely can't swim because they didn't learn as kids. In the United States a lot of public beaches and pools remained 'Whites Only' till at least the '70s, so perhaps the phenomenon is even more pronounced there. Black fisherman on the African coast and in the West Indies don't seem very scared of the sea, do they? (But what does a white guy know, anyway?)
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Name : Adrian Petyt, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Atheist, Age : 36, City : Hong Kong, State : NA Country : China, Occupation : Drama/Writing teacher, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, I don't think blacks are afraid of the water. I am a black woman who was a lifeguard and on a swim team. We lived near a beach and swam all the time. Swimming lessons cost money and also pools are scarce in many urban areas. It is not fear but availability & opportunity. My mother grew up poor in NY and never learned. All of her children swim.
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Name : april gaines, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Religion : Episcopalian, Age : 47, City : broad run, State : VA Country : United States, Occupation : manager, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Upper middle class, Why are blacks afraid of water? Maybe because some don't know how to swim or just don't like big bodies of water. Same reason why a white person might be scared of water.
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Name : Sierra, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Hispanic/Latino (may be any race), Religion : Christian, Age : 26, City : Columbia, State : MD Country : United States, Occupation : Librarian, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Lower middle class, I am not afraid of water. In fact, I own an above-ground pool for the purpose of cooling off during the 100-degree summer weather. However, many blacks live in urban areas where decent swimming pools are difficult to access. A public swimming pool in my city closed last year. Black and Mexican children comprised the majority of people who used this pool.
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Name : Sherry23738, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Religion : Christian, Age : 24, City : Bakersfield, State : CA Country : United States, Education level : Technical School, Social class : Middle class, I'm black and I know that it is a hair reason for black females. When our hair gets wet it is so difficult to comb. Since black people have very brittle hair anyways, combing tangled hair breaks it off. That is why we can't wash our hair every single day.
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Name : Denisia25752, Race : Black/African American, City : Chantilly, State : VA Country : United States, I've always been told that Blacks don't learn to swim because their fat content is so low, when they're young, that they sink much faster. Thus the Fear.
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Name : Tony, City : Yorktown, State : VA Country : United States, I totally agree with the responses that have been given so far, but I don't think it's the whole story. I hope everyone knows that Black people CAN swim, it's very silly to think they can't. I in fact love swimming, I learned as a kid, but nowadays I relax my hair. Relaxing your hair is damage enough without the added effect of chlorine(they say your hair can fall out) so I don't often go swimming anymore, if I do I try not to get my hair wet, which really is the best part. As for large bodies of water I really don't know, I haven't experienced this.
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Name : Dawn J, Gender : F, Race : Black, American Indian and Irish, Age : 20, City : Davis, State : CA Country : United States, Occupation : Student, Education level : 2 Years of College, What a strange idea! Have you never been to the Caribbean? By the way, I am white as snow and am afraid of water, so I've never learned to swim.
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Name : Carol, Gender : Female, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Christian, Age : 24, City : Berkshire, State : NA Country : United Kingdom, Social class : Middle class, You want somebody to say something like residual effects of slavery or something equally as stupid. I can't swim a bit but I love water, pools, ponds rivers, lakes, anything. When I get in the water, I sink right to the bottom - no "dead man" float for me. My bones do happen to be dense, and I don't have much body fat for buoyancy. But I'm one person, I'm not 'Blacks'. I graduated from a "black" high school and we had a swim team. Imagine that, black high school kids up on the blocks at swim meets trembling in fear because they're so afraid of water. I also had two dogs and a bird, so you can strike that one off your list, too.
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Name : Nick-F23473, Gender : M, Race : Black/African American, City : Seattle, State : WA Country : United States, I've always heard that we have denser bones, which makes swimming harder for us. I don't particularly believe that. I lot of black women won't swim because it will mess up our hair because of the relaxer, etc. Personally, I am a touch claustrophobic and can't stand for those big ocean waves to be around me. Creeps me out. But I have no problem with a swimming pool.
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Name : Monika23847, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Religion : Christian, Age : 27, City : Houston, State : TX Country : United States, Occupation : Programmer, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, I attended high school in the Downriver Metro Detroit area. I was on the swim team, and we swam against schools where the teams were mostly or wholly composed of black kids. They definitely didn't have a problem with water. In fact, the people who seemed the most reluctant around water were my white female classmates, who didn't want to get their hair or makeup messed up.
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Name : Cindy-M, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 38, City : Seattle, State : WA Country : United States, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, For the same reason we all like chicken and watermelon: because you said so! If I said all whites stink, does it make it true? No. So just because Omarosa couldn't swim on Fear Factor doesn't mean Shannon can't swim. In other words, it's an urban myth or prejudiced thought. Also, when you don't have resources, you won't learn things. If I don't have an iron and have never been around one my whole life, will I know how to iron? No. So if you don't live by a pool and you know that you can drown in water if you can't swim, then what will be your reaction to large bodies of water? That's right, fear. And that's for all races.
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Name : D. Murray, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Religion : Baptist, Age : 21, City : Richmond, State : VA Country : United States, Occupation : Student/ Literacy Tutor, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Upper middle class, One of the reasons black ladies avoid the water is because it ruins their hairdo. They go to great lengths to straighten their hair, and any sort of moisture reverts it to the natural state. They avoid rain also, and swimming. Most women of color spend lots of money to get their hair 'done' and don't want to mess it up.
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Name : Dixie N., Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Christian, Age : 54, City : Conroe, State : TX Country : United States, Occupation : postal clerk, Education level : High School Diploma, Social class : Middle class, I think it has to do with the 'daredevil factor' that Whites generally/stereotypically have and that Blacks do not. It's the same reason mostly White people bungee jump, cliff dive, mountain climb, ski, go on Fear Factor, sky dive, and camp. A pool is one thing, but an ocean is another.
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Name : Tre-Lorenz, City : Poughkeepsie, State : NY Country : United States, 
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