Glad I checked my RSS feeds tonight and tuned into the Jack & Jill Politics coverage of the Valley Swim Club incident. I found Cheryl Contee's post with the video above ("Hi, my name is Elon James White and I'm broadcasting from 1952..."), and I found the ColorOfChange.org call for letters asking Attorney General Eric Holder to
investigate whether the Valley Club violated federal civil rights laws when it kicked out a group of children from the Creative Steps Day Camp and canceled the camp's contract.
Please sign the ColorOfChange.org petition to Attorney General Holder now. You can also send a letter to the Valley Swim club via the same petition page at Color of Change.
To recap, the Valley Swim Club, a private swim club that advertises open membership, accepted over $1900 from the Creative Steps Day Camp so their campers could have a place to go swimming this summer.
"When the minority children got in the pool all of the Caucasian children immediately exited the pool," Horace Gibson, parent of a day camp child, wrote in an email. "The pool attendants came and told the black children that they did not allow minorities in the club and needed the children to leave immediately."
The next day the club told the camp director that the camp's membership was being suspended and their money would be refunded.
One of the most astounding of many astounding moments in this story was the public statement from John Duesler, president of the Valley Swim Club, which said:
"There was concern that a lot of kids would change the complexion … and the atmosphere of the club."
As the ColorOfChange.org letter to Holder notes, canceling the Creative Steps Day Camp's contract
after learning that the children at the camp were largely African-American and Latino [is] a possible violation of section 1981 of the Civil Rights Act of 1866.
I was pleased to learn via a commenter at Jack & Jill Politics, named Miranda, that while we are waiting for appropriate response from the Department of Justice, a local Philadelphia college has come forward to offer the Creative Steps kids space in its pool.
[T]he staff at Girard College, a private Philadelphia boarding school for children who live in low-income and single parent homes, stepped in and offered their pool.
"We had to help," said Girard College director of Admissions Tamara Leclair. "Every child deserves an incredible summer camp experience."
The school already serves 500 campers of its own, but felt they could squeeze in 65 more – especially since the pool is vacant on the day the Creative Steps had originally planned to swim at Valley Swim Club.
"I'm so excited," camp director Alethea Wright exclaimed. There are still a few logistical nuisances -- like insurance -- the organizations have to work out, but it seems the campers will not stay dry for long.
NBC Philadelphia also reports that US Senator Arlen Specter (D-PA) will investigate the discrimination claim.
"The allegations against the swim club as they are reported are extremely disturbing," Specter said in a statement. "I am reaching out to the parties involved to ascertain the facts. Racial discrimination has no place in America today."
If you haven't already headed over to ColorOfChange.org, please go now and ask Attorney General Holder to investigate possible violations of federal civil rights laws by the Valley Swim Club.
Oh, lastly, kudos to the owners of Gumdrops & Sprinkles in Wayne, PA who gave the Creative Steps kids a free day of candy and ice cream making while they are waiting for all the the details with Girard College to be worked out. If you want to show Gumdrops & Sprinkles some love for showing the Creative Steps kids some love, click on the store photo and leave Gumdrops & Sprinkles a comment on their Yelp page.
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Philadelphia Swim Club
Ugly racism, ouch! What could be more cruel?
Whites @ Hintingdon Valley swim club rules,
Refusing to allow black children in their pool,
This is not the United States in the year 1802.
Minority kids from a day camp, Creative Steps,
Had a birds eye view & they won’t soon forget,
July 2009, how segregation reared its ugly head,
And how many thought racism had long been dead.
Well, too bad that’s the way it is so what the heck?
Al least they had the courtesy to return the check,
Yeah, not for free that would be too much like right,
I’m wondering how much they charge other whites?
Especially since members words reacted through fear,
As many were asking, “what are black kids doing here?”
Members comments? The club doesn’t share those views,
Is that like only Hitler and not his henchmen hated Jews?
Let’s hear an excuse of why these kids were turned away,
A safety issue, over crowded, officials were heard to say,
However, it was pre planned and if that’s really the case,
Why agree to terms and accept money in the first place?
They’ve seen blacks before (Donovan McNabb) why the panic?
Are you kidding, like the rest of America when seeing Hispanics,
No, not all of the USA, maybe it’s a cable news anchor majority,
Whatever, wherever, however, this is about Caucasian priority.
Hey, I’m not being a hater since others have rules like that,
Neighborhoods or restaurants you cannot go if you are black,
Every single person reading this poem knows that I am right,
This is not an isolated incident, to the world’s end is the fight.
62 years after Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier line,
We’re supposed have racial harmony, things should be fine,
Oh no! Not according to the Philadelphia Swim Club plan,
Their members must also be members of the Klu Klux Klan.
The club president said the kid’s color would change the complexion,
Cool! Now I get it, brown pool water is the reason for their rejection,
Cousin LaQuita was baptized with Japanese women at Holy Trinity,
Very next day she traded her new Ford Focus for a used G37 Infinity.
Same respect given Burr Oak Cemetery to those who have died,
The only difference here, is receiving this crap while still alive,
Image their treatment had the minorities showed up after dark,
Hey! Cheer up kids, there’s more safety in the ocean with sharks.
by Luke Easter
Black discriminate against whites all the time, like 99% of them voting for Obama, they are racists, pure and simple. As far as a private club, the club can exclude someone for any reason whatsoever, it's private, just like your home. Augusta National bars women from joining, and the US Supreme Court ruled they have that right.
There is no RIGHT to a private pool. What part of PRIVATE is unclear? PRIVATE organizations discriminate for sex, race, religion, you name it. I'll bet a white man can't join the Black Muslims, or an all-black jazz club; and I sure don't see them hanging out at the purely racist NAACP. There are all-black police officer, firefighter, and other organizations that exclude whites. Even the US Naval Academy had an all-black organization, the 9th Battalion.
So if some swim club doesn't want a bunch of black kids to come there and swim, and it's a private club, so be it. Quit complaining, band together and build a swim club, ban whites, and maybe you'll feel better.