Swim club accused of racial discrimination against kids

[larrymcg421]

Swim club accused of racial discrimination against kids - CNN.com

A Philadelphia-area day care center said Thursday that members of a private swim club made racist comments about the center's children, and the club then canceled their swimming privileges.


Some kids from the Creative Steps Day Care center say club members made racial remarks.

1 of 2 The Creative Steps Day Care children -- ages kindergarten through seventh grade -- went to the Valley Swim Club in Huntingdon Valley, Pennsylvania, on June 29.

The day center's director, Alethea Wright, had contracted to use the club once a week. During their first visit, some children said they heard club members asking why African-American children were there.

One of the boys told the Philadelphia Inquirer that a woman at the club said she feared the children "might do something" to her child.

Days later, the day care center's $1,950 check was returned without explanation, Wright said.

The stepfather of one of the children was filing a complaint against the club with the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission, the panel's chairman, Stephen Glassman, said Thursday. Watch one of the children say what he heard at the swim club »

The commission is investigating the allegations, spokeswoman Shannon Powers said, and will attempt to resolve the conflict out of court.

"Protests and public outcry won't do much to help these families, but the Human Relations Commission can determine the facts and hold people accountable for any illegal acts of discrimination," State NAACP President J. Whyatt Mondesire, who serves as a commission member, said in a press release.

Sen. Arlen Specter's office said the Pennsylvania Democrat has sent a letter to the Valley Swim Club president asking him to reinstate the contract with Creative Steps, saying, "I think that you would agree that there is no place for racism in America today."

On its Web site, the Valley Club disputed the allegations of racism.

"We had originally agreed to invite the camps to use our facility, knowing full well that the children from the camps were from multi-ethnic backgrounds," the statement said.

"Unfortunately, we quickly learned that we underestimated the capacity of our facilities and realized that we could not accommodate the number of children from these camps. All funds were returned to the camps and we will re-evaluate the issue at a later date to determine whether it can be feasible in the future."

CNN attempted to speak with club President John Duesler on Thursday. He said he had no comment and asked CNN to leave the club property.

But Duesler told two Philadelphia television stations that the children had changed "the complexion" and "atmosphere" of the club.

A small group of protesters gathered in front of the club Thursday and said they think Duesler's statements prove that the club's action was racially motivated.

"I was hoping it wouldn't be something that was so blatantly apparent. I was hoping that it was overcrowding," one protester said. "When I read the statement by the club president, it made it blatant."

Jim Flynn, who said he was one of the club members who made a complaint against the children, said it was not racially motivated.

"There were a lot of children in the pool and not enough lifeguards," he said. "As general members, we were not told that they were coming. If we knew, we could decide to not come when the pool was crowded or come anyway. We could have had an option."

He said two other day-care centers, neither of which included minority children, had previously been similarly disinvited.

A private Philadelphia boarding school said Thursday that it plans to help the day care center.

"We thought it was appalling what happened," said Girard College Admissions Director Tamara Leclair.


She is meeting with the director of Creative Steps to sign a contract allowing the children to use Girard's facilities this summer, as early as Monday.

"We've had a wonderful response. I even received an e-mail from a woman in Florida telling us we did the right thing. "

My initial thought is that the club president's own words about the "complexion" and "atmosphere" are going to come back to haunt him. That certainly doesn't sound like a simple issue of overcrowding.

[M GO BLUE!!!]

Michael Smerconish had a caller on his show who was there when the kids were there. She said the only thing out of the ordinary was it was crowded. The kids were well behaved, etc.

So apparently it's not like they were a bunch of hell-raisers or anything. I wonder what the reason could be...

[Bad-example]

The day center's director, Alethea Wright, had contracted to use the club once a week. During their first visit, some children said they heard club members asking why African-American children were there.

Black kids? In Philadelphia?? WTF?

[Ronnie Dobbs2]

At the very least, a very stupid and poor choice of words from the President.

[wade moore]

This article uses way too many undefined pronouns.

[Julio Riddols]

How many times are country clubs going to be allowed to do this shit in this day and age?

I wish racism was a punishable offense in blatant cases such as this. Its ignorant and pointless.

[molson]

Originally Posted by Bad-example

Black kids? In Philadelphia?? WTF?

Huntingdon Valley is a rich suburb, I think.

Reading about this elsewhere, it sounds like a lot of the members of this private pool were annoyed that there were a bunch of kids there one morning, which I can definitely understand. Who knows if their race aggravated the annoyance. But if may have been someone saying, "what are all these black kids doing here", when maybe the "black" wasn't necessary, or was used to distinquish the outsiders from the children of members, who are probably all white (and who there might not have been many of)

I certainly wouldn't want to be a member of a country club that brought in bus loads of kids, regardless of their race. It would definitely change the "atmosphere" for me.

That's what I would want to know about this place, how many kids are there on a typical day. If there's usually 30 white kids. and then one day there's 40 kids with five of them black, that's a lot different than if there's usually 3 white kids, and then one day there's 25 kids with 20 of them black (or any race)

[larrymcg421]

Originally Posted by molson

I certainly wouldn't want to be a member of a country club that brought in bus loads of kids, regardless of their race. It would definitely change the "atmosphere" for me.

Except the person who made the "atmosphere" comment was the same person who decided to let the kids come there, and he knew exactly how many would be coming.

[molson]

Originally Posted by larrymcg421

Except the person who made the "atmosphere" comment was the same person who decided to let the kids come there, and he knew exactly how many would be coming.

I'm sure he got a lot of complaints about the kids being there, and made a decision based on that. Obviously at best he's an idiot for inviting them in the first place and not realizing this would be an issue. (if the issue is overcrowding)

We can't know what those complaints are motivated by unless we know whether this place was typically kid-friendly.

[Samdari]

Originally Posted by larrymcg421

Swim club accused of racial discrimination against kids - CNN.com



My initial thought is that the club president's own words about the "complexion" and "atmosphere" are going to come back to haunt him. That certainly doesn't sound like a simple issue of overcrowding.

Complexion was one of the best examples I have ever seen of choosing your words poorly.

I love how this is buried amongst the outrage:

"He said two other day-care centers, neither of which included minority children, had previously been similarly disinvited."

[molson]

Originally Posted by Samdari

Complexion was one of the best examples I have ever seen of choosing your words poorly.

Seriously, that wasn't well though out.

But even if he's a racist, there's no way he's using that word in the context people are running with it.

[larrymcg421]

Originally Posted by Samdari

Complexion was one of the best examples I have ever seen of choosing your words poorly.

I love how this is buried amongst the outrage:

"He said two other day-care centers, neither of which included minority children, had previously been similarly disinvited."

I'm not sure that passes the smell test for me. I'd like to see if that can be verified. After all, why would he keep inviting youth groups if the real problem was overcrowding?

[cuervo72]

Nah, it's not a rich suburb (edit: at least, it wasn't when I was there...some houses do look newer).

Valley Swim Club loc: HUNTINGDON VALLEY, PA - Google Maps

It's in NE Philly. Not a country club either from the looks of it (put it on satellite view, you can see the area AND the pool), more like a "swim club" (I don't believe it is part of the golf club across the way there).

What I'm guessing is that this is a club where members pay dues to use the pool and a few other amenities. Much like you'd have in some newer developments if you are part of that subdivision, except these areas are older and didn't have those, so you have swim clubs (Somerton Springs is another a bit further north, Phoenix Club was another near us growing up...both much nicer looking than this).

I'm also guessing that the management of the club didn't do a very good job - if any - of letting members know that this camp was going to be using the pool. If you were a member at a community pool and 60-70 kids that you don't recognize showed up en masse...wouldn't you kinda wonder wtf is going on?

That said...I'm sure some of the members there made comment of "black kids" showing up, and I'm sure that made their reactions a little worse than if 60-70 white kids would have shown up. It's also a REALLY bad choice of words to use "complexion" on the part of the club's management.

[clemsonfan]

Originally Posted by larrymcg421

I'm not sure that passes the smell test for me. I'd like to see if that can be verified. After all, why would he keep inviting youth groups if the real problem was overcrowding?

Bingo.

[molson]

Originally Posted by larrymcg421

I'm not sure that passes the smell test for me. I'd like to see if that can be verified. After all, why would he keep inviting youth groups if the real problem was overcrowding?

Bad management, possibily, not calculating how many people are actually going to be at the pool at any given time. Do these members and schools have specific times that they're going to be there, or can they just drop by whenever?

Though I would also like to see that verified, since it sounds like it comes from a club member.

[clemsonfan]

Originally Posted by cuervo72

Nah, it's not a rich suburb (edit: at least, it wasn't when I was there...some houses do look newer).

Valley Swim Club loc: HUNTINGDON VALLEY, PA - Google Maps

It's in NE Philly. Not a country club either from the looks of it (put it on satellite view, you can see the area AND the pool), more like a "swim club" (I don't believe it is part of the golf club across the way there).

What I'm guessing is that this is a club where members pay dues to use the pool and a few other amenities. Much like you'd have in some newer developments if you are part of that subdivision, except these areas are older and didn't have those, so you have swim clubs (Somerton Springs is another a bit further north, Phoenix Club was another near us growing up...both much nicer looking than this).

I'm also guessing that the management of the club didn't do a very good job - if any - of letting members know that this camp was going to be using the pool. If you were a member at a community pool and 60-70 kids that you don't recognize showed up en masse...wouldn't you kinda wonder wtf is going on?

That said...I'm sure some of the members there made comment of "black kids" showing up, and I'm sure that made their reactions a little worse than if 60-70 white kids would have shown up. It's also a REALLY bad choice of words to use "complexion" on the part of the club's management.

That pool is a lot smaller than I imagined it would be.

[gstelmack]

Originally Posted by molson

I'm sure he got a lot of complaints about the kids being there, and made a decision based on that. Obviously at best he's an idiot for inviting them in the first place and not realizing this would be an issue. (if the issue is overcrowding)

This is the most logical explanation for the whole thing. One thing that will kill a trip to the pool is crowding, and if folks are paying for the privilege that's the last thing they want.

"Complexion" may be a poor choice of words but fits well with the statement and aside from context is perfectly fine. I just hate how PC has changed what you can and cannot say so much.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by gstelmack

"Complexion" may be a poor choice of words but fits well with the statement and aside from context is perfectly fine. I just hate how PC has changed what you can and cannot say so much.

Sometimes it's a lot easier for people to dig a large hole with a microphone than with a shovel or even a backhoe.

[Samdari]

Originally Posted by larrymcg421

I'm not sure that passes the smell test for me. I'd like to see if that can be verified. After all, why would he keep inviting youth groups if the real problem was overcrowding?

Don't know. But, with the national press now sniffing around this story, it would be a horrible idea to invent that. If it is indeed a lie, we should know by the end of today.

[Young Drachma]

It was just a poorly handled case, but the kids who wanted to swim aren't to blame at all. As usual, it's adults who mucked it up badly.

Moreover, why go someplace that you know might be unwelcoming to your group. Probably someone idealistic in charge who didn't think about the reception said kids would get at the private swim club.

[Marc Vaughan]

Originally Posted by larrymcg421

I'm not sure that passes the smell test for me. I'd like to see if that can be verified. After all, why would he keep inviting youth groups if the real problem was overcrowding?

Possibly during the non-summer part of the year the pools were nearly empty during the week and the 'management' thought having such groups in would bring in extra revenue and due to the lack of usage by the current members it wouldn't cause problems.

It being the summer its likely that the pools are now more heavily in use and such a decision in retrospect might now be showing some flaws .... dunno just speculating, but such things CAN happen imho (what can I say I tend to by default presume the best of people ).

[clemsonfan]

Pa. swim club accused of racism to ask kids back - Yahoo! News

Apparently they are inviting them back.

Pa. swim club accused of racism to ask kids back


By RON TODT, Associated Press Writer Ron Todt, Associated Press Writer – Mon Jul 13, 12:29 am ET
PHILADELPHIA – A private suburban swim club accused of racism after it canceled the memberships of dozens of minority children says it will seek a meeting with the kids' camps to work out an agreement for them to return.
Amy Goldman, a member of The Valley Club, said those able to attend a hastily called meeting Sunday afternoon voted unanimously in support of reinstating the memberships of the Creative Steps day camp and two other camps as long as safety issues, times and terms can be agreed upon.
The Creative Steps camp had arranged for 65 mostly black and Hispanic children to swim each Monday afternoon at the gated Huntingdon Valley club, which is on a leafy hillside in a village straddling two overwhelmingly white townships. But after the group arrived June 29, camp director Alethea Wright said, several children reported hearing racial comments and some swim club members pulled their children out of the pool.
The camp's $1,950 was refunded a few days later.
The president of the swim club's board of directors, John Duesler, has said the decision was made out of safety considerations, not racial concerns.
"We have near-unanimous approval from our membership, so at this point we'll be figuring out ... how to approach all the camps and see how we can move forward," Duesler told WPVI-TV at the club's entrance on Sunday.
The swim club has claimed it has a diverse, multiethnic membership, but Goldman, a member for two years, said she couldn't remember seeing a black member this year.
Goldman said members were told that the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission, which has opened an investigation, is to make a fact-finding visit to the club July 30. U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter, D-Pa., said Friday he had asked the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate "to determine what action, if any, is warranted by the Civil Rights Division."
Others to criticize the club include the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and the United States' highest-profile black swimmer, Olympic gold medalist Cullen Jones, who said Thursday that "hearing about what's happened to these 65 kids is both disturbing and appalling."
Chuck Wielgus, executive director of USA Swimming, the governing body for the U.S. swim team, said he was stunned by the accusations against the club.
Wright, the camp director, didn't immediately return a telephone call seeking comment Sunday evening. She said earlier that other institutions had offered to host her group at their pools for the summer.
Camp parent Silvia Carvalho said she hadn't heard about the club's action but didn't believe her 9-year-old daughter, Araceli, would be willing to return.
"She has already said so," Carvalho said Sunday night. "She doesn't want people to look at her the same way."