The Los Angeles Times reported that recreational camping has a “complicated” past when it comes to racism and the cost of camping gear is a “barrier” preventing minorities from enjoying the hobby.
“Camping is often called America’s favorite outdoor activity,” the Los Angeles Times posted on its Twitter account, along with an article titled, “Want more diversity in camping? Start with the gear.”
“But camping and national parks have a complicated past when it comes to racial equality and equal access for all. One modern barrier to entry: the cost of camping gear,” the tweet continued.
Camping is often called America’s favorite outdoor activity. But camping and national parks have a complicated past when it comes to racial equality and equal access for all.
One modern barrier to entry: the cost of camping gear.https://t.co/m49vAxD8sC
— Los Angeles Times (@latimes) August 10, 2020
“From 2010-2014, 94.6% of visitors to national forests identified as white,” another tweet in the thread stated. “People who identified as Latino made up 5.7%, and those who identified as Black made up 1.2%.”
In the article, the reporter tied those statistics to the history of segregation of national parks in the 1930s and pointed out that national parks were originally inhabited by Native American tribes that were removed from the area “violently.”
The reporter also praised the Sierra Club for recently condemning its founder, naturalist John Muir, over “racist comments in his writings about black and indigenous people.”
The article describes a woman named Mo Jackson, who went camping in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, and decided she would try to encourage more people of color to experience the popular hobby.
Jackson then began raising money via Instagram for people of color who wanted a camping kit but couldn’t afford it.
“I think there is a lot of white guilt right now,” Jackson said about the increase in donations in July. “We’re all learning and growing. Sometimes, guilt is part of it, too — not that we want guilt and shame, but we do want growth.”
Jackson’s GoFundMe account titled “Camping Gear for BIPOC” has raised more than $66,000.
Jackson’s group added: “Black and indigenous people have historically had connections to nature and the land that have been stripped from us. My bigger picture is full solidarity; it’s going to take all of us coming together to topple these racist systems so we can find our sacred places again, and find peace again, together.
