Over the last few weeks, we’ve witnessed how the killing of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery and many others have galvanized protests around racial inequality.
Black Lives Matter. Not only do Black Lives Matter, climbers of color belong in climbing organizations, in leadership positions, and at every single crag across our state.
Racism, the kind we are talking about today, is not individual acts of overt racism – slurs or intimidation (though those are certainly racist). It is a complex and interconnected system that continually reinforces the status quo.
What is the status quo in the climbing community in WA? Last October the WCC conducted a survey of the WA climbing community. In the demographics portion of the survey just .4% of respondents identified as Black or African American while 83% identified as white/Caucasian.
We begin by acknowledging this fact. The WCC will identify ways we can help shift the status quo as we perform our fundamental mission to make Washington a better place to climb through advocacy, stewardship, and education.
Sincerely,
Ashley Siple, Board President
& the WCC Board