Adrianna - People of Color - My Choice

Why don’t people of color hike?

            We are half way through the semester now and overall this has been a thrilling experience. This is one of the few classes that I have taken here and have been challenged in my own spiritual journey. I am growing in ways that I could never imagine. It’s been pretty great.

            But, there is still one thing that I cannot help but to ponder? Does hiking, sacred journey, sacred place apply to people of color? If we looked at the pictures and movies we’ve seen in class the answer is clearly, NO. There have been little to no representation of people of color in class and I wonder why. Though this is a topic I will be exploring more in my end of the semester thesis paper I think there are a lot of other reasons why black people do not hike.

             As a college-aged black woman I have grown up in a culture where things were just not “cool” for black people to do. Some examples: listening to country music, eating green bean casserole, not liking friend chicken, and not being able to dance. All stereotypical things, yes, I know, and hiking and being in nature is another one of those no-no’s. Why though? Is hiking one of those opportunities that people of color believe they cannot afford? Do people not hike out of fear of ridicule from their peers? Can people of color be spiritual (or experience God) outside of the church? All of these questions are ones that I myself have never thought of but since being in this class I can honestly answer in opposition to the stereotype.

            Hiking expenses – yes you may need money to eat, stay in hostiles, and other extraneous things but we must realize that a good majority of people who hike are homeless, jobless and poor. Expenses seem to be a nonfactor. Ridicule from peers? Honestly if you are living your life every day to its fullest, who cares what others have to say? I can think of several things that I have done in my life that did not fall under the category of “black” in my neighborhood: listening to country music; not loving fried chicken, and taking AP courses and doing all that I can to get into college. I’ve found that setting myself a part as made me a lot better off in life. Now getting to my favorite question; can black people, specifically, be spiritual outside of the church? Historically, the church has been a haven for people of color. Slaves, activist during the Civil Rights Movement and many people today still utilize the church as a place of business, community, meeting with God and a variety of other things.