“Until the philosophy which hold one race superior and another
inferior
is finally
and permanently
discredited
and abandoned
everywhere is war”
-War by Bob Marley1
A guide: a person who has the necessary skills to teach people an outdoor discipline or lead an outdoor experience. When that word is uttered, what type of person comes to mind? Most likely not a person of color.
Furthermore, what processes are in place to validate one’s skills? How easy are these processes and certifications obtained? What are the obstacles to obtaining them? I will share a personal story before we dive into these topics.
We all have moments where we feel inadequate. And for people of color this feeling can be amplified when we see ourselves treated a certain way while someone else of a different racial demographic is treated another way….
…If we look carefully at the AMGA as an entity, it was never built for people of color, LGBTQIA2S+, or Disabled communities. And that is what makes it so difficult to bear these uncomfortable situations: in order for instructors of color to be deemed worthy of teaching or insurable, on the whole we have to go through a process that can and does hurt us due to our identities. And now due to the ever evolving policy known as the Scope of Practice, they have made it more difficult than ever to get people of color to teach climbing for affinity groups
