Some, hopefully most of you, read about this today:
Pool Boots Kids Who Might “Change the Complexion”
Campers sent packing after first visit to swim club
By KAREN ARAIZAMore than 60 campers from Northeast Philadelphia were turned away from a private swim club and left to wonder if their race was the reason.
“I heard this lady, she was like, ‘Uh, what are all these black kids doing here?’ She’s like, ‘I’m scared they might do something to my child,’” said camper Dymire Baylor.
The Creative Steps Day Camp paid more than $1900 to The Valley Swim Club. The Valley Swim Club is a private club that advertises open membership. But the campers’ first visit to the pool suggested otherwise.
If accurate (and who amongst us really trusts the press these days?), this is clearly outrageous. Such blatant racism has no place.
An insinuation that this was, of course, those nasty Republicans inspired me to do some research…
First up, a search for “Valley+Swim+Club+PA” which yielded a link to this handy site. From there I had a street address, but more importantly, a City. Next search: “Huntingdon+Valley+PA+county” which yields Montgomery County. Next stop, The Tired Gray Crone’s Election Map 2008 for Pennsylvania. Montgomery County is just Northwest of Philadelphia.
Turns out that county went for Obama by 54.7% and is one of the bluest of blue counties in PA.
How about them limousine liberals!
That county was 60%. The state went 54.7%
It’s completely false to make an assertion that because an area went 54% [or 60%] for Obama that the area must be full of ‘liberal’ racists.
First, you are not considering the other 46% of the voting populous, which is a good number of people. Second, there is no correlation here between the political area and the action of one club. That would be like looking at crime rates in Oklahoma and determining that they must all be related to the fact that the state is so Conservative.
No thinking person would make that assumption.
ML,
Care to reconsider?
Well?
I read this article yesterday on Drudge Report and I was appalled. I was appalled by the behavior of the club but also by the reaction of some of the parents. In addition, some of the comments regarding this article were appalling as well.
I read it on Drudge too, and I thought (hoped) that the problem was more likely the horror of 60 kids of any size/age/color/sex showing up to swim at once. I think I’d leave, no matter whose kids they were.
Rodney G. Graves
No. You’re telling me that ONE guy is representative of ALL people who supported Obama?
How about right wing websites that circulate photos of Obama that are clearly racist?
http://crooksandliars.com/nicole-belle/conservatives-circulate-picture-obama
How about the guy on FOX News who believes in the bizarre purity of genes argument?
http://crooksandliars.com/david-neiwert/kilmeade-does-eugenics
Should someone conclude that these idiots represent you and your beliefs? I know a good many Conservatives. Some may be racists but they don’t represent all Conservatives.
Although I will note that the GOP doesn’t get much support in the black or latino community – but that is a different argument.
Well, it came from the drive By media, so who knows if there is any factual basis to it whatsoever.
But if it’s Half true, those Creative Steps kids ought to OWN the Valley Swim Club.
The bastards call us racists (And I’m proud of it) when we do stuff like voting against ZeroBama, and that makes a mockery of REAL racism like this appears to be.
ML,
Damn the statistics and the exemplar of the private club’s president, eh?
You, sirrah, are not here for the debate!
ML is rehashing the age old adage of the Liberal Democrat Party, do as we say not as we do.
The contract was approved by someone on the Board and should have been honored.
If Members were upset, their recourse is 100% with whoever approved the contract. Period.
There is breach of contract here aside from some Children being humiliated.
The contract should have been honored.
Here, here for The Valley swim club member who voiced their personal opinion or remark. It’s about time. Why do White people in America continually have to feel guilty about Black people, and walk on eggshells constantly; particularly in the Philadelphia area. If American Blacks would shed their “entitlement” culture, maybe White people wouldn’t be so “upity”.
ML hasn’t reached the level of awareness which equates to reality yet, so he probable is not cognizant of the fact that if the offender’s politics had not been noted you can bet that within 24 hours someone in the media eager to win peer group points would have utilized selective logic skills to suggest that the offenders were republicans. Maybe even go so far as to suggest Sarah Palin called the pool manger and demanded they be barred from the facility. Afterall, Sarah has been implicated in the death of Michael Jackson on the Al Sharpton show.
Dave
For the record Obama is black. Not sure if that one passed you by – but a greater percentage of the time if you vote for a black person you are probably not a racist. This, of course, does not mean that if you don’t vote for a black person you are racist. Not a game I play.
This idiot who runs this club is the exception – obviously. And yes, if he were a Republican the media would note it. I’ll give you points for that.
On the other hand, since you seem to accept the fact that Palin is a victim then I’ll go ahead and blame the rather poor education of some Republicans on her.
@ML:
Ummm, actually no. He isn’t.
Obama is 50% white from his Mommy’s side.
He’s 50% black (at most) from his Daddy’s side. (Genealogical research of his family tree actually indicates the he is 43.75% African Arab and 6.25% black.)
Just wanted to clear that up. You know, for the record.
Who can we blame your poor education on?
This story is absolutely appalling. Those poor kids…I almost cried seeing their disappointment and watching them get smacked in the face with real life racism.
Great research on this story. Unfortunately, Bucks and Montgomery counties are absolutely crawling with these type of NIMBYs. The liberals move up here from the city (which they’ve ruined with their liberal policies) and then try to destroy things here by voting for the same failed policies. However, when it comes time to put their money where their mouth is, you get this type of incident. Sickening.
@Rodney
Where was the insinuation that this was an attack on Republicans?
First of all the swim club spokes person must either be a moron or an insensitive jerk.
The children did not deserve that kind of treatment.
Let me relate a humorous story of an experience I had back in the 70s in up state NY. The inner city (down state) as we referred to it. They had a program for inter city kids. It was called something like fresh air kids. Anyway my friend and his wife signed up to bring 2 children into their home and neighborhood for 2 weeks. I had boxes of surveyors chalk. Multicolored, 1 in. in dia. 4 in. long.
I gave my friend a box for his kids, the neighbor kids, and the fresh air kids. My children and the children in our neighborhood would color the sidewalks and streets with pictures and artwork of everything imaginable. (they were street artists before that became popular). Back to the point of my story. My friend’s wife called one day she was very upset. She was humiliated and mortified I caused her embarrassment. It seamed that the two little girls from the inner city had written in 4 foot high letters in the middle of the culdesac the words F_CK F_CK multiple times until they ran out of chalk. I placed my hand over the receiver so as not to annoy her any more and laughed until I cried.
There is a moral to this story but it escapes me.