Do Black People Camp? BY: Grovena Haywood-Duke RN, BSN, MSN

 

 Do black people camp? This is a question that I hear all of the time, whether it be asked upon myself, heard in casual conversation, or mentioned in television or movies. If one was to do a quick Google search, you would find a plethora of answers most of which would be stereotypical, offensive, and utterly ridiculous. But overall the answer one would receive to that question would unfortunately, and falsely, be NO!

What is camping? According to the Webster’s Dictionary, camping is a place usually away from urban areas where tents or simple buildings (such as cabins) are erected for shelter or for temporary residence.This activity most often takes place outdoors in places such as local/state/national parks, campgrounds, sports arenas, and even your backyard. Camping is considered, by most, a very enjoyable event. It can be undertaken alone in a very serene, anti-stressed, meditative getaway, or experienced with family and friends, and includes time of games, socializing, music, and intense, non-stop eating.

Camping is in our DNA. According to history, our ancestors lived in adobe huts, tents, and make shift cabins. All activities of daily living mainly occurred outside. Cooking, bathing, hunting, gathering, agricultural growing, animal husbandry, marriages, funerals, etc, all occurred outdoors. Outside there is nature. Fresh air, clean water, many wondrous animal and plant life all there for our enjoyment, nourishment, and survival. Even as we were brought to the New World under horrendous circumstances, we continued to make a way out of no way in the great outdoors. And not only did we survive on the hard, treacherous labor of the land outdoors, we built and fed a nation in the process.

So, do black people camp? Yes, of course we do. Every time I have ever gone camping I see black people, and they are thoroughly enjoying themselves. In this day and age camping has evolved into an activity that can be as rustic or luxurious as one would like. I see black people in tents, yurts, cabins at campgrounds, and more and more are now entering the realm of recreational vehicles. We too appreciate all that nature has to offer. We too enjoy s'mores by the campfire, fishing on the lake, trail hikes, barbecuing on the grill, and singing and dancing until the wee hours of the morning.

As people of the sun, we are energized by the sunlight that stimulates the melanin within our cells. As we embrace homeschooling and understand the value of teaching our children the importance of self sustainability and self sufficiency which can only come about through outdoor activity, we need to foster the love of camping into our community. Let’s teach our children that being outdoors opens up a world of opportunity, and that we challenge them to encourage others within our community to adopt a camping lifestyle as well. Let’s go camping!!!!