A New York program is helping Black people of all ages enjoy swimming: ‘It’s very empowering’

A swimmer learns to float during a lesson by Black People Will Swim at York College in Jamaica, Queens, New York, on 20 June 2024. Photograph: The Guardian

Valerie Spears hadn’t planned on taking swim lessons when she RSVP’d to her high school reunion in New York City.

But when Spears, a 72-year-old retiree who lives in Akron, Ohio, learned about a free class in Queens, she decided to pack her bathing suit.

“I’m seeing it on TV. A lot of kids are drowning because they don’t know how to swim and when [my daughter told me about the class] , I said, ‘Maybe I should go’” Spears said. “I might drown myself as an older person.”

• Top: Young swimmers and an instructor at the swimming lesson organized by BPWS on Thursday, 20 June 2024.

  Above: Donna Hall, 58, and her son, Samuel De La Cruz, 11, share a tender moment. They have been taking lessons with BPWS for two years.

On 20 June, Spears participated in a lesson organized by Black People Will Swim (BPWS). The gatheringwas part of a larger effort, coined the World’s Largest Swim Lesson, to promote water safety.

Dozens of first-time swimmers of all ages joined the Jamaica, Queens event, with lessons rotating based on age groups.

At the start of the evening, instructors assessed a group of excited, younger children on their comfort in the water. Later, older adults got in the pool, practicing essential skills like floating as participants cheered each other on. Volunteers handed out free goggles and caps and shared information on future lessons. At the end everyone received certificates.

Attendees of the swimming lesson at York College in Jamaica, Queens, New York.

“It’s just really empowering people and letting them know that you do have options [with learning] how to swim,” said Paulana Lamonier, the BPWS founder.

Lamonier, a former competitive swimmer, started BPWS in 2019 as a “side hustle” after posting on social media that she wanted to teach 30 people how to swim. Since then, BPWS has provided free and low-cost swimming lessons to over 2,500 Black and brown people at Queens’ York College pool. Lamonier said she plans to expand the business.

Like most of its clients, BPWS’s 15 swim instructors are Black. “Seeing someone who looks like me, who is making me feel comfortable, who’s giving me the right affirmations to keep me going, that’s very empowering,” said Jeanette Benons, who takes lessons along with her two sons. “I think that’s a great step and very important for our little kids,” she said.

• Top: Paulana Lamonier, founder of BPWS.

  Center: Valerie Spears, 72, left; Jeanelle Benons and son Thaddeus, 9, right.

  Above: Randy Smith, 69, is an instructor at the swimming lesson.

Drowning is the leading cause of death for US children aged one to four, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Black people under age 30 are 1.5 times more likely to drown than white people, and those disparities are even starker during early adolescence:

Black children 10 to 14 drown at 7.6 times the rate of white children.

These figures have historical roots. Black Americans were historically excluded from quality public pools, and even when segregation was outlawed in the 1960s, pools across the country shut down rather than integrate. Pools that remained open were often openly hostile places toward Black swimmers.

Swimmers and instructors participate in a free swimming lesson organized by BPWS.

Today, there are only about 300,000 public pools in the US, compared with 10.7m private pools, according to estimates from the Association of Pool & Spa Professionals. Many cities have shortened their public pools seasons and restricted hours – even during record-breaking heat – amid a nationwide shortage of lifeguards.

“Black people have not had access for generations to get to pools through racism,” said Donna Hall, 58, whose 11-year-old son Samuel is a student. “With no access to pools, how are you gonna learn how to swim?”

Samuel has been taking lessons with BPWS for two years.

A swimmer floats in the pool during the free swimming lesson organized by BPWS.

“Me, personally, I would recommend this place,” Samuel said, “because it’s important to Black people and it’s a place where Black people are able to swim.”

Longtime instructor Randy Smith said many of his Black students are afraid of the water.

“Some because they had an experience when they were younger, some [fear] is inherent because back in the slave days, one of the ways we got punished was [to] put us in the water, put our head in the water,” he said referencing the trauma from enslavement that can be passed down through generations.

Scenes from the swimming lesson organized by BPWS.

With record-high temperatures expected this summer, being able to enjoy the water safely was a priority for many participants – young and old.

Thaddeus Benons, age 9, described Thursday’s lesson as “awesome”. A lesson at a different swim school “didn’t really feel good”, Thaddeus said, but with BPWS he felt “protected”.

For those who may be nervous, Thaddeus offered some advice: “Try something because this could maybe be your future.”

At the swimming lesson, the attendees celebrate as they receive certificates.