Swimming champions come in many forms—from Olympic medalists to grassroots advocates. This Black History Month, we celebrate three individuals who are changing history when it comes to providing access to water safety and swim lessons. Cullen Jones OLY, the first African-American World Record holder in the 50-meter freestyle. Through his work with the USA SWIMMING FOUNDATION, he's helped reduce the percentage of African-Americans who can't swim from 70% to 64%. Since launching Black People Will Swim (BPWS) in 2019, Paulana Lamonier has provided free and low-cost swimming lessons to over 2,500 people of color in New York, with the aim of dismantling stereotypes about Black people and swimming. Ray Rickman created Stages of Freedom to offer free swim lessons to Black and low-income youth. His program has taught 2,600 children essential water safety skills, and he's now working to build a $20-million Olympic pool facility to expand access. Water safety is for everyone. These leaders are breaking down barriers, building confidence, and saving lives. #BlackHistoryMonth #DrowningPrevention #ChildSafety
Emmy-Award Winner ?? Creative & Social Media Strategist, and founder!
2 周Thank you so much for mentioning Black People Will Swim and seeing the work that we're doing. We're just getting started!