So, Sambe would sneak out. I want to be ready, and in the best shape, the minute it's time [for qualifying]. He studied Social Anthropology at the London School of Economics, and earned his Master's in Medical Anthropology from University College London. 1 September 2020 Khadjou Sambe, Senegal's first female professional surfer, trains near her home in the district of Ngor - the westernmost point of the African continent. She was familiar with the competition circuit, and decided that the best way to find and showcase Black surfers would be to hold a new competition. . I always tell people the board is my love, the waves are my friends, and the sea is my second family. We spoke to Khady and her fellow Black Girls Surf members, 12-year-old Brazilian student Maria Eduarda Cesar and 14-year-old South African student Zia Hendricks, about what they love about surfing, how they balance sport and schoolwork and what you need to know before you pick up a surfboard. I . When I come from the beach, I shower, eat and study in the afternoon. The story they tell when they get homeit might not be similar to the actual action, but that's exactly how this sport makes you feel: larger than life. In the US, segregation laws that blocked people of color from accessing public beachesperpetuated thisimage. Learning to embrace my learning style, even if it deviates from the norm, How gender discrimination affects girls daily lives in Pakistan. To Rhonda, the reason for their hurdle is clear. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement and Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement and Your California Privacy Rights. I forget my problems. My determination was strong enough to make them change their minds, she said. Were a spectacle. ", If it hadn't been, Harper added, "I wouldn't be stuck in Senegal right now. Because she is such a dynamic surfer that it's hard." If you listen to people, you'll lose sight of what's important, and you're going to feel down. We talked to the couple about their work and what drives them, Lexi Laine uses her skill as a freediver to create photographs that focus on women and the beauty of the oceans that are affected by climate change. But black surfers on the professional circuit are rare despite the multicultural origins of the sport. After all, diversity in hiring has been a matter of law in numerous countries, including the US, for decades. Black Girls Surf is an amazing organization for African American Women, but their founder has in the recent past has been embroiled in controversy. Cash in those Marriott points on a bucket-list safari in southwest Kenyas wildlife-rich Maasai Mara reserve. I love my family. By subscribing to our newsletter(s) you agree to our User Agreement and Privacy Policy & Cookie Statement. Rhonda Harperwho, it's worth mentioning, only recently returned home to California after being stuck abroad for nearly . The first thing I thought was, This is my sister right here, she, Sambe now trains to represent Senegal in the Paris 2024 Olympics. Remy Smith, a captain with the Los Angeles County Fire Department Ocean Lifeguard Division, is also watching Sambe catch the wave and is impressed. Despite the odds, she kept going, fueled by a growing love of being in the water. Since launching Black Girls Surf in 2014, Rhonda has trained dozens of girls, and some boys, and garnered global media coverage, from Marie Claire in the UK to Outside magazine in the US. Set on Africas westernmost point, Senegal has long been known as a wave-rich locale. "We stand . Without any role models to fall on, she is forging her own path and moved across. Sambe watches her relatives prepare to slaughter sheep. And then, maybe 100 or 200 feet from my house, was the oceanand that's the playground I decided I wanted to explore. She loves books, cats and french fries. As Sambe continues to train for a spot on the Senegalese national team and, hopefully, a chance at qualifying for the Olympics, Harper has taken Black Girls Surf to the next level. With the mission of understanding every facet of her industry Rhonda created Black Girls Surf in order to facilitate representation in the surf communityrepresentation not just for the black community but specifically black little girls. Part of the Lebou ethnic group that traditionally live by the sea, her family didnt make it easy for her to surf. But then Sambe went to California in 2018 to train with BGS. And since were made to feel like outsiders, many people of color don't see surfing as a sport for them. Residents of Ngor have become used to seeing Sambe carrying her board through the alleyways leading to the shore. Adventure is always around the corner. Too much heartbreak., In the meantime, though, Rhonda continues to push for change in other avenues. Even more than wary parents, Rhonda says her biggest obstacle to building a pipeline of professionals from Senegal is the countrys surf federation, which sanctions and supports licensing for surf clubs and events. [Here] you can see different surfers, different waves, different people, Sambe says. ", I said, "I did. Right now, Harper's elite squad members have their sights set on the 2022 Junior Olympics in Dakar, Senegal. In each of these places, Black Girl Surf founder Rhonda Harper's vision of a surf world full of coaches, mentors and trainers of color is manifesting, most notably with plans to send West African female surfers Khajdou Sambe (of Senegal) and Kadiatu Kamara (of Sierra Leone) to the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. I go one way, he goes one way. On a typical day, I get up early. It was meant to be a short trip for Harper, the founder of Black Girls Surf, to do some filming with Khadjou Sambe, a Senegalese surfer whom she's training for the Olympics and the pro World Surf League. I wasnt sure why they were doing it, Sambe says. Even clothes for doing sports, shoes for doing other sports. Upon meeting, Harper knew they would do great things together: both of us had these huge grins on our faces. What does surfing do for you? I wanted diversity in the judging, she says. That helped me become who I am today. We said Listen, your girls are with us, says Rhonda. 23 hours ago, by Gabriella Ferlita She and her siblings and cousins were constantly harassed, she said, and it came to a head when three kids walked into class one day dressed as members of the KKK. Sambe is a proud Lebou, an ethnic group that traditionally lives by the sea, but as a teenager, her parents refused to allow her to surf for two and a half years, saying it brought shame on the family. Now, as soon as the girls get out of the water, they walk up the beach grinning, noses running. I always advise them not to listen to other people, to block their ears, she said. But surfing is a male-dominated sport in her home country of Senegal, and it's rare to find women riding the waves.It's even rarer to see women of color, especially Black women, surfingsomething Sambe quickly became aware of as she began progressing in the sport. Harper says she has a birds eye view from the sand, which she loses when she's on asurfboard. She has found herself acting as security for her surfers whove been harassed out on the ocean by white surfers. Founder of the Black Girls Surf school, Rhonda Harper, shares her first impressions of . As Senegal's first female professional surfer, Sambe is now inspiring the next generation to defy cultural norms and take to the waves.. Undeterred by the Olympic Games' postponement, Sambe trains whenever conditions allow in the powerful surf break near her home in the . I want it for black girls, all girls, not just me, she says. She quickly realized the problem: there was no target market. "My determination was strong enough to make them change their minds," she said. With the backing of her coach Rhonda Harper, Sambe now focuses her energies on lifting up other young black girls. He says part of the problem is that unlike when he was a kid, swimming isnt taught in school anymore. We want to give them the opportunity to expand their choices, right? So we said, Were going to send these girls to school, and give them an education so they understand that the world is a lot larger than they think., Photographer Dave Imms was on assignment in Yoff, the village where BGS sits, not long after Rhonda had created the surf school. Introducing Black Girls Surf camp SENEGAL Our official camp is in partnership with Malika Surf Camp which has been instrumental in @sambe_khadija's training for years. Surfing offered her an alternative path. Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles. The Venice leash-pulling incident went viral, and Harper said she began to receive threats. She wants to compete professionally, but one challengeis having enough money to go to qualifying events around the world. Now shes rescuing more in Serbia. Rhonda Harperwho, its worth mentioning, only recently returned home to California after being stuck abroad for nearly 17 months during the pandemic, first in Senegal and then in South Africawas born for two things: surfing and activism. And despite the challenges and what she describes as heartbreak, Rhonda has also seen dramatic change since she created the BGS club in Ngor two years ago. Senegal had a black woman walking through a surf camp. Support The World's nuanced international coverage. Surfing has long been part of Hawaiian and Polynesian cultures. After the 23-year-old finishes her stretches, she moves slowly toward the water. Rhonda Harper, the surfing coach who founded Black Girls Surf, facilitated the move in order to train Sambe for the Japan Olympics. Black people were being left out of professional surfing; they weren't getting exposure, so I decided to create Africa Surf so that we could chase Black talent internationally. So BGS pays the $120 annual fee, works with participants in the water and on the land, and takes them to places like the local shopping mall or art museum. To me, its all about parenting. "In Senegal, that doesn't happen," she says. Being frustrated with not seeing people that look like me, I decided to just create something for us [where] we could see ourselves, she says. So we dont have our licensing. That stumbling effectively quashed her hopes to create sanctioned, amateur-level events in Senegal. Khadjou: On a trouv un petit endroit sur la plage. first pro female surfer makes waves all over the world. At first, I figured wed just have her surf with the boysand then, I thought, "No, we're not going to do that. There are only three things you can do when you're living on the North Shore, especially since I was living in a resort: There was golfing, and I wasnt doing that. Rhonda Harper was visiting Ngor, a fishing village in Dakar, Senegal, when the pandemic arrived and borders closed, indefinitely. "It's very important for self-esteem and just basic motivation to do something better with their lives, to strive for something bigger and larger," she said. An exhibition. She'd been going out into the water with her cousins for over a week, trying to surf on an old surfboard, une planche de surf. In Senegal that doesnt happen, Sambe says. It makes you feel like you can conquer anything. Ad Choices. Rhonda wasnt looking to challenge the culture, per se, but saw that the girls could do with a surf room of their own. My determination was strong enough to make them change their minds, she said. Now she trains the next generation of young black girls to defy social norms and hit the waves. As Senegals first female professional surfer, Sambe is now inspiring the next generation to defy cultural norms and take to the waves. Sambe does not want to keep her passion for herself. It wasn't until 2018 that Harper was able to navigate political roadblocks and get one of her two main surfers to the United States to train. Our most popular newsletter for destination inspiration, travel tips, trip itineraries, and everything else you need to be an expert traveler in this beautiful world, On Location: In My Journey to 50, Gabrielle Union Pulls Off the Ultimate Birthday Trip Through Africa, Finding My Chosen Family During a Spontaneous Trip to Costa Rica, How to Get Over Jet Lag, According to Our Editors, Women Who Travel Podcast: Gabrielle Union Celebrated Turning 50 By Visiting Ghana, Zanzibar, Namibia, and More, After Cancer, I Planned a Trip That Taught Me to Slow Down. Because of all the budget cutbacks, you have be a little bit more persistent or affluent to have access to those pools to learn how to swim, Smith says. It was humbling.. A surfer paddles in the foreground while Khadjou Sambe waits for a wave in the backgound on Jan. 6, 2019. My advice to other girls who want to start surfing is don't listen to other people. While in Senegal I met Rhonda Harper, the founder of Black Girls Surf. Rhonda Harper, the founder of Black Girls Surf, has coordinated a massive paddle out movement that is leaving an indelible mark on surfing. Im proud of winning my category in the South Africa Grom Games in 2016 and 2017. After Sambe paddles out she doesnt jump right into the fray of surfers catching waves. Any girl." - Khadjou Sambe "merger" - Black Girls Surf Senegal . She now trains beginners in her home town at Black Girls Surf, a surf school for girls and women who want to compete professionally. Black Girls Surf began with an Africa Surf International contest. Khadjou Sambe surfs the world famous N'Gor Right wave, just off Senegal's N'Gor Island. We started looking through West Africa and I just happened on this camp called Malika Surf Camp and there was a black woman in these photos holding a surfboard, Harper says. I backed off a little bit to let them breathe and rethink [things], she says. CNN . She cites getting surfboards as one of the big hurdles for enthusiasts and would-be competitors; most are made overseas and far more than in industry hubs like California and Australia. Thats how we found, Black Girls Surf offers lessons and helps burgeoning Black surfers go pro, If youre interested in learning more about, take one of their surf classes in the US, Jamaica, and beyond, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. I wonder if it is because I am black. Senegal's first pro female surfer makes waves all over the world. Rhonda has since tried to create similar contests in South Africa also known for its peeling pointbreaks and endless coastline but there, too, obstacles cropped up. "Where were the surfers?" The new building, said Rhonda, will have places to sleep for students who need housing and a kitchen to be able to prepare food for them. She surfs just as well as the men.. Being the only girl on the waves invited suspicious looks and questions. "Lo and behold, on the side of my car it said: 'go home n-----.'" A post shared by Black Girls Surf, Inc. (@blackgirlssurf) "Since the official public launch of BGS, the amount of Black and Brown girl groups has increased at a rate that has shocked all of us," Rhonda said in a statement to Medium. Black Girls Surf. Now the Californian has made it her home, plans for a bigger and better school and is helping empower local girls for whom surfing was always 'for the boys' By Anna Dimond Photography by Dave Imms 08/07/22 But with support from hergrandmother, she pressed on. "This is my second pandemic," Harper says of coronavirus. 2023 Cond Nast. With locations now in Brazil, Ghana, Jamaica, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone and the U.S., the nonprofit is diversifying the water and the international surf narrative. Out of the extended overseas stay has come something groundbreaking: a Senegal-based Black Girls Surf camp with the explicit goal of not only teaching young Senegalese women to surf, but. "It's like trying to take a tornado right, and put a rope around it, wrangle that thing down. The colours were deep and saturated and I had that feeling you get on holiday when youve spent time in the sun and sea and ODd on vitamin D and the world feels like a great place., To Rhonda, this portrait of familiarity and sense of peace, however, is all too rare. Ive travelled over the whole of South Africa. Did my research and found Senegal. Residents of Ngor have become used to seeing Sambe carrying her board through the alleyways leading to the shore. Residents of Ngor have become used to seeing Sambe carrying her board through the alleyways leading to the shore. In 2021, she traveled to Cape Town as part of her training program. But Sambe didnt care. She purchased the space and a new surf school, Black Girls Surf in Senegal, was born. As. Sambe is a proud Lebou, an ethnic group that traditionally lives by the sea, but as a teenager, her parents refused to allow her to surf for two and a half years, saying it brought shame on the family. My education is important to me because without education you wont have much to do in life. I like going to Black Girls Surf because they're like family and every day we're happy together, doing everything together. But I would never see any Black girls and always wondered where they were. A lot of the people in my family would say, why is she always with boys? I started getting into problems with my family, so I stopped surfing for about two years and worked at a restaurant. "An African surfer, a West African female surfer coming into play that's never happened before," Harper said. But the modern industry around surfing, despite its Polynesian roots, was developed mostly by white men on American and Australian shores, starting in the mid-20th century. "I just stopped, because I didn't want to deal with that," she said. Sambe heads up the Senegal division, now training 42 girls, with 5 in an elite category of surfing. We are trying as best we can to keep training, since everything is closed. It was real uncomfortable, and I had to explain what that meant to them in the car: We, as people of color in the waterwhite people don't see us as surfers. They literally said to the World Surf League [the global sanctioning body for elite surfers], We dont see women as pro surfers, she says. Back in California, Black Girls Surf gained slow but steady momentum, organizing quarterly meetups in regions including the US, Jamaica, and Sierra Leone and gathering steam on social media. As they lunge and stretch, the women laugh and joke amongst themselves. Together, the two have since opened free surf camps all over California and Africa, in places like Ghana, Liberia, and Sierra Leone, to inspire and train other young girls of color to ride the waves. So this is a historical beach, she said, [Inkwell] feels like home.. In a shock spray just uploaded to YouTube from Senegal, Black Girls Surf founder Rhonda Harper has quit her association with the WSL, called surf identity Sal Masekela an "Uncle Tom" and accused the popular commentator and musician of "bringing negativity and dividing black people." Last Wednesday, Masekela was the hit of a paddle-out at She's also teaching adults and young people English and surfing in Dakar. It means everything to me. The school itself sits along the Yoffs seaside promenade. GROMS, an NFT collection focused on promoting diversity through surfing, travel and the blockchain has arrived! This is the strength of women. In 2014, she helped launch Africa Surf International, inviting surfers from the African diaspora to compete in Sierra Leone. Its the microaggression, its the subtle cutting off. I wish I had known before I started surfing that it's really addicting!!! You have to have courage in surfing because if you don't have courage, you're never going to be able to continue because we have a lot of boys, we don't have girls. I like to listen to gospel and Bob Marley. Despite the fact that none of the surfers . They were always flying to DCor taking us to visit and talk to people in juvenile facilities since they both worked in civil rights. Historians say forms of surf riding were also present in parts of West Africa as far back as the 1800s and in northern Peru. 21 hours ago, by Chanel Vargas But often, finding the space to go to church is made difficult. Concerned that Harper would "end up in jail," her mom sent the 15-year-old to live with her older sister on the North Shore of Hawaii. So far, "that was the biggest win that I've had in the surf industry. 17 hours ago, by Eden Arielle Gordon Make your tax-deductible gift today to support The Worlds independent, human-centered journalism. During the past six months, she has been training in hopes of eventually qualifying for the 2020 Olympics, where surfing will appear for the first time. ", Harper said that statements like that give her hope. 20 hours ago, by Pallavi Bhadu The story you just read is available to read for free because thousands of listeners and readers like you generously support our nonprofit newsroom. But surfing is a male-dominated sport in her home country of Senegal, and it's rare to find. Black Girls Surf began with an Africa Surf International contest in Sierra Leone. DAKAR Growing up in the coastal capital of Dakar, Khadjou Sambe never saw a Black woman surfing the Atlantic swells. All rights reserved. Thats why she is working with Sambe. Thanks to Black Girls Surf, Khady was able to reenrol in school and is back on track to finish her education. Please select the topics you're interested in: This Organization Is Training Black Girls to Become Pro Surfers, 1 Wave at a Time, A Breakdown of the USWNT Women's World Cup Schedule, Meet the 23 Stars Representing the US at the Women's World Cup, Being a Good Dad Isn't Good Enough in 2023, After Tori Bowie's Death, Her Olympic Teammates Are Demanding Action, Megan Rapinoe Supports Fiance Sue Bird at Her Emotional Jersey Retirement Ceremony, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. I thought: why dont I go surfing, represent my country, represent Africa, represent Senegal as a Black girl?. Sambe chats to her mother Koune Ba outside their house. 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The only other black women she has surfed with have been through Harpers organization, Black Girls Surf. A sport characterized by solitude in nature sometimes leans on a gathering. You don't want to get back in the water. And they were stopped at least four times by white people on the street to take pictures, because theyd never seen a black surfer before. Surf Girls Jamaica is one such tale. Thats when opportunity met with inspiration. The only Senegalese woman in the World Surf League, Sambe has spent the . You know, called them a joke, and then a few moments later the leash pull happened, says Jeff Mercado, with NBC and one of the reporters at Venice that day. On a crisp winter morning at Californias Santa Monica State Beach, Khadjou Sambe is running through a warm-up drill with her surfing coach Rhonda Harper. I came out from my tower because I saw some African American females surfing, and you dont see that very often, and it was pretty cool to see them ripping down the wave, Smith says. My day starts with meeting Rhonda, we eat breakfast and head over to the surf camp. He admires Sambes tenacity. I want to have a good job with a sponsor and everything. While Khadjou did not compete in the 2020 Olympics, as she and Rhonda had planned, she continues to train the next generation of potential competitors at home in Ngor. One day, I was at the beach with a Caucasian malewhich made things even worse, since this was the 80s and so already interracial relationships weren't celebratedand we were catching looks the whole time. "I always advise them not to listen to other people, to block their ears," she said. But we cant do it without you: Our fiscal year ends on June 30, and we need your help to reach our funding goal to ensure we can continue our work. KhadjouSambe, 25, Senegals first female professional surfer, surfs during a training session off the coast of Ngor, Dakar, Senegal. In the male-dominated world of surfing, Senegal had no female surfers until Sambe arrived on the scene. August 31, 2020 / Coming from the Lebou community, Khadjou Sambe grew up in Dakar, and despite having direct access to the Atlantic and the country's surf spots, she has never seen a single black woman surfing. . A longtime surfer, Rhonda founded Black Girls Surf after noticing the lack of visibility of Black women in professional surfing. Harper set up Black Girls Surf (BGS) to redress an imbalance in surfing. But since 2018, Harper has focused on changing the lives of young Black girls around the world through Black Girls Surf. For two and a half years they banned her as a teenager, saying it brought shame upon their family. . From the shores of Dakar, Senegal, Rhonda Harper is training Black girls to become professional surfers through her organisation, Black Girls Surf. My parents always had extra people in our house, which was already fullwe were literally the Black Brady Bunch. I started surfing when I was sent to Hawaii to live with my sister when I was almost sixteen. . He knows well what it is like to be the only person of color in the water. , a professional and amateur competition series that brings together surfers of the African diaspora. Every day, the reporters and producers at The World are hard at work bringing you relevant, fact-based and human-centered news from across the globe. Sambe broke other social norms too. It waned after missionaries arrived and effectively banned the sport, as part an effort to erase native culture. Im not sure if all the girls were confident swimmers but they were keen to surf anyway., With their permission, Dave captured some of that exuberance through his lens. ", PHOTO EDITING MARIKA KOCHIASHVILI; WRITING ALESSANDRA PRENTICE; EDITING GILES ELGOOD; LAYOUT JULIA DALRYMPLE. Having Black women at the top of the surfing world is crucial, Harper said, because it opens the door for young athletes like those in her training centers. Harper had designed clothes for celebrities in the past, and had a vision of creating a fashion line that was "beach-oriented, but Afrocentric."
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