[at-l] Racism on or around the AT

[jb2002@adelphia.net (JB)]

Jim

>First - since I don't remember your posting here before (or is that my
>faulty memory again?) - welcome to the zoo/campfire/whatever-it-is. Pull up
>a log and get a smashmellow from Red.

BTDT about 1 week ago.

>Over the years there have been Indians, Chinese, Koreans, South Africans,
>American Indians and Afro-Americans - among others - who have attempted
>thruhiking the AT.  I know there was an older black man who apparently
>finished last year, but I didn't get to meet him (he was at the Gathering).
>Sometime in the last year (?) there was an article in Backpacker about a
>younger black male who's thruhiked both the AT and the PCT.  But there have
>been too few.

These are the people I was hoping to reach with my original question. While
I fit the race profile of the hiker majority, my hiking partner is chinese
american.
To make things more interesting, our thru-hike will be the longest time she
has spent in the US in many years due to her job as a Field Epidemiologist.
(Think warzone and refugee camps!)

Jan responded that she hiked with an inter-racial couple a few years ago who
had a pretty good experience. Many years ago while in college, I had the
misfortune to meet racists from many different races who were all too
willing
to tell me how wrong inter-racial relationships were/are. Since these
encounters
weren't in the 'great outdoors', it got me to thinking about the possibility
of
racism on or near the AT.

>Racism?  Straight talk - you might run into it in the South - you might run
>into it in the North.  You might not.  Depends entirely on the individuals
>you run into along the way. Frankly what I've found (and I'm not black) is
>that most (99.9%) of thruhikers couldn't give a flying hoot what your skin
>color is.  All they care about is that you're a hiker and smell as bad as
>they do.  For myself, I've run into a few (very few) black backpackers and
>my reaction is invariably: "Cool.  I wonder if they can get their friends
>out too".

>Yeah - there's that 0.1%, isn't there.  Noticed that, didn't you?  Well,
you
>should have anyway.

This is what I would expect from the majority of the thru-hiking community
but
thru-hikers often interact with people outside the community.  Neither my
hiking partner nor I are the in-your-face kind of people, rather very much
HYOH.
While I may want to avoid the 0.1%, I realize that they exist -- just trying
to get a handle on how often I will deal with them.

>There IS an occasional a$$xxxx of that stripe out there.

Ain't it the truth.  Just wish it weren't so. I am glad to hear that we will
have support within the thru-hiking community.

>One thing I skipped over back there - the real hardcore racists are more
>likely to be from the North than the South. I'm not gonna explain that one.
>But I think you'd likely find it true.

That doesn't really surprise me. I have heard that historically Terre
Haute,IN
and a county near Dayton OH have had the highest Klan membership within the
last 40 years.

>I'm not really answering your question, am I?  Or am I?  I'm not sure there
>is a definitive answer to a question that gets asked as seldom as this one.
>One of the people who might have a better answer is Baltimore Jack - he's
>known and hiked with a lot of thruhikers - and has probabl seen a few
things
>that I haven't.  How about it, Jack?

Actually, you have pretty much confirmed my suspicions that most people will
prove to be supportive except for the few a$$xxxxs out there.  Without first
hand knowledge, you have answered as well as I expected.

>Finally - I'd like to ask you to stick around for a while.  I've got
another
>question for the list that I'll ask tomorrow (no more time tonight).  And
>I'd specifically like to get your opinion about it.

I have been lurking mostly for the last two months just because I am
overwhelmed
by everything I need to finish before I start my thru-hike in roughly 4
weeks.
I would be happy to answer your questions if I have answers but I cannot
begin
to answer questions about the general lack of minority hikers.

Jay