Posted on 12/31/2020 12:00:35 PM PST by SJackson
It would be the last hike of the season, Jessica Newton posted on her social media platforms. With mild weather forecast and Colorado's breathtaking fall foliage as a backdrop, she was excited — convinced an excursion at Beaver Ranch Park would be the quintessential way to close out months of warm-weather hikes with her "sister friends."
Still, when that Sunday morning arrived in 2018, Newton was shocked when her usual crew of about 15 had mushroomed to include about 70 Black women. There's a first time for everything, she thought, as they broke into smaller groups and headed toward the nature trail. What a sight they were, she recalls, as the women — in sneakers and hiking boots, a virtual sea of colorful head wraps, flowy braids and dreadlocks, poufy twists and long, flowy locks — trekked peacefully across the craggy terrain in the crisp mountain air.
It. Was. Perfect. Exactly what Newton had envisioned when in 2017 she founded Black Girls Hike to connect with other Black women who share her affinity for outdoor activities. She also wanted to recruit others who had yet to experience the serenity of spending time with friends in nature, which she fell for as a child attending an affluent, predominately white private school.
But their peaceful exploration of nature and casual chatter — about everything from food and family to hair care and child care — was abruptly interrupted, she says, by the ugly face of racism.
"We had the sheriff called on us, park rangers called on us," recalls Newton, now 37, who owns a construction industry project development firm in Denver.
"This lady who was horseback riding was upset that we were hiking on her trail. She said that we'd spooked her horse," she says of a woman in a group of white horseback riders they encountered. "It just didn't make any sense. I felt like, it's a horse and you have an entire mountain that you can trot through, run through, gallop through or whatever. She was just upset that we were in her space."
Eventually, two Jefferson County sheriff's deputies, with guns on their hips, approached, asking, "What's going on here?" They had been contacted by rangers who'd received complaints about a large group of Black women being followed by camera drones in the park; the drones belonged to a national television news crew shooting a feature on the group. (The segment aired weeks later, but footage of the confrontation wasn't included.)
" 'Move that mob!' " attendee Portia Prescott recalls one of the horseback riders barking.
"Why is it that a group of Black women hiking on a trail on a Sunday afternoon in Colorado is considered a 'mob?' " Prescott asks.
A man soon arrived who identified himself as the husband of one of the white women on horseback and the manager of the park, according to the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office incident report, and began arguing with the television producers in what one deputy described in the report as a "hostile" manner.
The leader of the horseback tour told the deputies that noise from the large group and the drones startled the horses and that when she complained to the news crew, they told her to deal with it herself, the written report said. The news crew told deputies that the group members felt insulted by the horseback riders use of the term "mob." The woman leading the horseback riders, identified in the incident report as Marie Elliott, said that she did not remember calling the group a mob, but she told the officers she "would have said the same thing if the group had been a large group of Girl Scouts."
In the end, Newton and her fellow hikers were warned for failing to secure a permit for their group. Newton says she regrets putting members in a distressing — and potentially life-threatening — situation by unknowingly breaking a park rule. However, she suspects that a similarly sized hiking group of white women would not have been confronted so aggressively.
"You should be excited that we are bringing more people to use your parks," added Newton. "Instead, we got slammed with [threats of] violations and 'Who are you?' and 'Please, get your people and get out of here.' It's just crazy."
Mike Taplin, spokesperson for the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office, confirms that no citations were issued. The deputies "positively engaged with everyone, with the goal of preserving the peace," he says.
Newton says the "frustrating" incident has reminded her why her group, which she revamped and renamed Vibe Tribe Adventures last year, is so needed in the white-dominated outdoor enthusiasts' arena.
With the tagline "Find your tribe," the group aims to create a sisterhood for Black women "on the trails, on waterways and in our local communities across the globe." This summer, she secured nonprofit status and expanded Vibe Tribe's focus, adding snowshoeing, fly-fishing, zip-lining and kayaking to its roster. Today, the Denver-based group has 11 chapters across the U.S. (even Guam) and Canada, with about 2,100 members.
Research suggests her work is needed. The most recent National Park Service survey found that 6% of visitors are Black, compared with 77% white. Newton says that must change — especially given the opportunities parks provide and the health challenges that disproportionately plague Black women. Research shows they experience higher rates of chronic preventable health conditions, including diabetes, hypertension and cardiovascular disease. A 2020 study of more than 17,000 women found that racial discrimination also may increase stress, lead to health problems and reduce cognitive functioning in Black women. Newton says those findings underscore the need for stress-relieving activities, and the power of nature to deliver.
"It's been studied at several colleges that if you are outdoors for at least five minutes, it literally brings your stress level down significantly," says Newton. "Being around nature, it's like grounding yourself. That is vital."
Newton says participation in her group generally tapers off in winter. She is hopeful, though, that cabin fever from the pandemic will inspire more Black women to try winter activities.
Atlanta member Stormy Bradley, 49, says the group has added value to her life. "I am a happier and healthier person because I get to do what I love," said the sixth-grade teacher. "The most surprising thing is the sisterhood we experience on and off the trails."
Patricia Cameron, a Black woman living in Colorado Springs, drew headlines this summer when she hiked 486 miles — from Denver to Durango — and blogged about her experience to draw attention to diversity in the outdoors. She founded the Colorado nonprofit Blackpackers in 2019.
"One thing I caught people saying a lot of is 'Well, nature is free' and 'Nature isn't racist' — and there's two things wrong with that," says Cameron, a 37-year-old mother of a preteen.
"Nature and outside can be free, yes, but what about transportation? How do you get to certain outdoor environments? Do you have the gear to enjoy the outdoors, especially in Colorado, where we're very gear conscious and very label conscious?" she asks. "Nature isn't going to call me the N-word, but the people outside might."
Cameron applauds Newton's efforts and those of other groups nationwide, like Nature Gurlz, Outdoor Afro, Diversify Outdoors, Black Outdoors, Soul Trak Outdoors, Melanin Base Camp and Black Girls Run, that have a similar mission. Cameron says it also was encouraging that the Outdoor Industry Association, a trade group, pledged in the wake of the racial unrest sparked by George Floyd's death to help address a "long history of systemic racism and injustice" in the outdoors.
Efforts to draw more Black people, especially women, outdoors, Cameron says, must include addressing barriers, like cost. For example, Blackpackers provides a "gear locker" to help members use pricey outdoor gear free or at discounted rates. She has also partnered with businesses and organizations that subsidize and sponsor outdoor excursions. During the pandemic, Vibe Tribe has waived all membership fees through January.
Cameron says she dreams of a day when Black people are free from the pressures of carrying the nation's racial baggage when participating in outdoor activities.
Vibe Tribe member and longtime outdoor enthusiast Jan Garduno, 52, of Aurora, Colo., agreed that fear and safety are pressing concerns. For example, leading up to the presidential election she changed out of her "Let My People Vote" T-shirt before heading out on a solo walk for fear of how other hikers might react.
Groups like Vibe Tribe, she says, provide camaraderie and an increased sense of safety. And another plus? The health benefits can also be transformative.
"I've been able to lose about 40 pounds and I've kept it off," says Garduno.
Indeed it is. Along with punctuality, deferred gratification, politeness, math, hard science, and hard facts to name a few other ways of "acting white".
Yeah, there was video. The entire “hike” was filmed, both by cameramen and drones, for a TV show. According to the article, footage of “the confrontation” was omitted from the final cut. Perhaps it didn’t fit the narrative, or revealed the incident had been exaggerated. If you’ve ever been around a group of black women, you know they can be noisy while enjoying themselves. Can you imagine 70 or 80 of them, accompanied by cameramen and drones, stretched out along a hiking trail?
There's a reason, especially as some horses get freaked out by riders on bikes. Horses in general need to be treated with respect as they all can have different reactions to strangers.
The leader claims to have hiking experience, but she doesn't seem to know the written and unwritten rules of the trail.
My experience is I have rarely encountered groups of more than 15 on a trail. They really should have checked in with the Park HQ to announce themselves and ask about any rules for a group that large.
“trekked peacefully across the craggy terrain in the crisp mountain air”
If “trekking peacefully” is anything like “peacefully protesting”, then I feel bad for the park rangers.
Plus they are MUCH bigger than I am. I always yield to horses on a trail.
Because 70 unruly people of any sex or color who are creating a commotion is a mob.
2021 headline: “Group of black youths looting and burning as part of BLM protests find support, and racism”
[[If it was a group of 70 white women breaking the rules]]
They would have been thrown into the recently vacated cells that formerly held rapists, murderers, criminals of all stripes, who were let go early because of covid
ok well maybe not- but there is a HUGE discrepancy in law enforcement imposed on citizens by rogue enemies of the nation posing as governors and mayors
Another sad story of our societies breakdown. Black woman have to form sperate and segregated groups of just themselves to go hiking?
Why not just go hiking with others who like to hike? Black woman, white women, Indian woman?
This is the death of our culture. Everything is us against them.
We used to be Americans with common cultural things and goals. Now we are all tribes pitted against each other.
Oh well, the next big war that the Democrats start will bring us all back together.
You don’t get 70 people hiking in a group in the wilderness being followed by drones. People do not normally hike in a group of 70. And, even if they do, they do not normally have attitudes.
Seems like these hikers, or at least a couple of these hikers, were seeking confrontations.
Don't worry, racist America! As soon as Kamala is inaugurated on January 20, 2021 (oh and biden too), all the racism magically disappears! POOF! Gone. Even "Hiking ... Racism" will magically disappear! It's a Festivus Miracle!
The proven rules for determining in which years "systemic racism" and "institutional racism" will constantly occur 24/7 are very simple:
It's that simple.
P.S. Leap Years happen to be U.S. Presidential Election Years. What an amazing coincidence!
70 people, regardless of color, is a huge group and the impact to the trail and park should have been considered. Breaking the group up into smaller, less impactful groups with experienced leaders should have been planned in advance.
I guess those of us who aren't black were born with $200 hiking boots on our feet, and all our packs, tents, sleeping bags, water filters, camp stoves, first aid kits, navigation and communication equipment was just free.
Every conflict is now a racial conflict according to NPR.
My group of 10 Christian white singles was hiking on a trail and we were questioned by rangers. It was Northern California and the rangers were looking for weed farmers. (back in the day)
Of course they experience racism. It’s from them because the are a black only group.
Probably doing like they and their male counterparts do in malls: walk 3 & 4 wide and take up the whole damn path.
Horses have right of way in Colorado even on the roads
I live near a large wildnerness area with lots of rules that are in place to protect the flora and fauna from harm; and have regularly seen white people scolded by rangers for breaking the rules. But when black people get chided for breaking rules, it’s racism.
Any type of people who are not paying attention to the environment might spook the horses. Tthe author indicates they were not quietly birdwatching or sketching the plant species, but discussing hair care, chatting back and forth on a trail while being followed by a drone camera, which would be up closer to the horse’s eye and ear level. If the group was speaking at the volume many of us have come to expect in public places such as restaurants, it would alarm any small animals in the area as well.
None of these behaviors are necessarily because of skin color; but if a white person objects to a disruptive behavior, including that which risks a horse suddenly rearing or breaking into a gallop that would throw a rider off onto a rocky trail or into brambles, well, it’s racism.
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