Photo Courtesy Of Shana Swain The author with her familyMy grandmother never stepped foot in a swimming pool. My grandmother never learned to swim, but my mother did. In swimming pools, Black children ages 10–14 drown at rates 7.6 times higher than white children. Two months after she gave birth to me – the first of her seven children – she signed up for swim lessons. In just four generations, a grandmother was barred from entry, a mother stepped in anyway and a daughter made swimming non-negotiable.

Source: Huffington Post March 15, 2026 14:15 UTC