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PHILADELPHIA SWIM CLUB DENIES RACISM: Also, black Olympic swimmer Cullen Jones speaks out after minority kids were turned away.
The Valley Club in Huntingdon Valley says it turned away the minority kids from the Creative Steps day camp because the facility was overcrowded. The club also claims it returned funds to more than one camp.
Creative Steps director Alethea Wright says the camp paid for weekly swim time at the gated club, which is in a village that straddles two townships with overwhelmingly white populations. But she says on June 29 some of the children said they heard people asking what "black kids" were doing there.
The club says any comments that may or may not have been made by members aren't shared by its board.
Olympic gold medalist and African American swimmer Cullen Jones released a statement yesterday calling what happened to the 65 children "acts of blatant racism" that has "no place in America and should not be tolerated by anyone."
"As a member of the USA Swimming's National Team and an African-American in the sport of swimming, hearing about what's happened to these 65 kids is both disturbing and appalling," said Jones.
"I work hard everyday through my efforts with USA Swimming Foundation and Make A Splash to increase the exposure for as well as enhance the number of African-American and Hispanic young people entering the sport of swimming, not just because it's a great sport, but because learning to swim and understanding the importance of being safe in and around the water are life-saving skills that no one should be denied.”
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