Posted on 10/30/2011 12:22:14 PM PDT by thecodont
Reporting from Yosemite National Park— Their Yosemite Valley tour was nearing its end, and the church ladies and gents from South Los Angeles had heard enough. Almost.
"He's been telling us stories he thinks we want to hear for two hours," said Ann Hale, 70, heaving a sigh of frustration from the back of the tram.
In fact, guide William Fontana had been regaling his listeners — most of them white — with stories about John Muir and Theodore Roosevelt, about fur trappers and rock climbers.
"We're still waiting for at least a few words about Yosemite's African American Buffalo Soldiers," Hale grumbled to a fellow passenger.
After filing off the tram, some women from Grace United Methodist Church surrounded Fontana on the sidewalk outside the Yosemite Lodge.
"Questions, ladies?" he asked.
"Yes," Hale said. "We want to know why you left out Yosemite's African American story."
Fontana seemed puzzled. "I don't have enough time to talk about Buffalo Soldiers in a two-hour tour," he explained.
Hale nodded politely and walked away.
For more than 60 years, the National Park Service has been trying to reach out to African Americans and Latinos. But its 395 parks, monuments, waterways, historic places and recreational areas remain largely the province of white Americans and tourists from around the world.
(Excerpt) Read more at latimes.com ...
If these morons want to learn more about Buffalo Soldiers, there’s plenty of books to read, and manuscript collections to go through. They need to get off their fat asses and do some research on their own. It isn’t the job of the park rangers to provide you with an education on a particular group of people. I spent years visiting the National Archives and historical societies, going through personal papers, as well as military and pension records for black Civil War troops...and I’m white. All these folks want to do is complain. If they really wanted to learn about their history, they’d do it on their own, and not depend on the government to give them a watered down version.
“I went there to make photos in the manner of Ansel Adams.”
Wow!! You set your sights pretty high. But I do agree with you, it’s hard not to take a good picture in Yosemite. I feel the same way about Glacier Nat’l Park. If you’ve never been there, go. It’s beautiful.
How long before the Obama administration starts flying in African muslims for taxpayer paid vacations at national parks where minorities are “underserved”?
In an odd way, this speaks to how far civil rights has come in this country, when a woman touring Yosemite can be offended by her perception of the inadequacy of buffalo soldiers coverage.
Will there soon be quotas for national parks?
“Sorry, Whitey! You can’t enter the park today because we haven’t received our required number of diverse visitors to the park. Thank you and have a nice day!”
Yep, as a kid I visited Yosemite in the summer of 1955. It was great, hardly anyone there and lots to see. No guided tours were available and none were needed. It was a graduation present for my 8th grade class before we started high school and a trip I will always remember. On a recent trip in which I stayed perhaps 2 hours, Yosemite was vastly changed and no longer the wilderness park I remembered.
That was my first thought, too!
I am so bleeping sick of hearing race, gender and sex obsessed lunatics whine.
diversity out in the parks.
People visit for the “beauty” of the park, not for the political correct propoganda.
The last time I visited Yosemite there was no shortage of diversity. The primary languages I heard were Japanese and German. English speakers were few and far between.
The only reason there wouldn’t be enough preferred minorities present anywhere is because Whitey is a bigot.
Maybe it is just me but this sounds like somebody with a chip on their shoulder.
“Yosemite is for white folks.”
Then “I was getting glares and stares” “Just ignored it” Oh you’re my hero.
It is the LA Slimes but they just sound like they have been programmed to see prejudice everywhere. Get over it and take control of your own life. Nobody owes you anything.
I was a Geek in high school, believe me I suffered a lot more prejudice than any of the people of color.
El Capitan is racist!
It may come as a surprise to Mr Hale, but it doesnt much interest me, or very many others I'm sure, that the US military administered the place for 5 years long ago.
It interests her, thats fine. But she shouldn't expect everyone else to be enchanted by that little bit of trivia when they're standing in the midst of such a creation.
I'm sick of the complaining.
funny and TRUE.
also sad.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.