Comments on: The Great Philadelphia Swim Club Fiasco: Racism or Overreaction?

By: Taliesin Knol

Taliesin Knol — Sat, 09 Jan 2010 09:10:10 +0000

Loose Loose, do nothing, yuppy whites yell at you, you loose job? Kick them out, well, Just say you don’t want a bunch of kids in the pool. If need be lie and say they peed in it, that’d either shut people up or, well, make’em pissed. At least he did something about a situation, I know I wouln’t want to be in a pool with 65 anything, (silent monks, maybe.) Unfortunatly, that something should have been prepare the pool in advance for a horde of children. Increase chlorine levels, lifguards, tell yuppy whites (who probably have one black friend each…) that they might not want to be there. Oh well, hindsight is 20/20

By: Rick Bayan

Rick Bayan — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 09:23:45 +0000

Nick: Thanks for the additional insights. The picture I get is that some club members were genuinely prejudiced (and not just because of the sheer number of kids jumping into the pool). So they put Duesler, a non-racist, in the awkward position of having to make excuses. It’s a shame that those club members reacted like old-time bigots; I can certainly understand how there would be hurt feelings among the kids.

If I were a member of the club, I’d complain not because the kids were black, but because there were so MANY kids — and that the club didn’t inform us in advance about the contract with the day camp. Seems like they need to improve their communications.

Thanks again… I hope the commotion dies down and that the club can invite underprivileged kids in the future (maybe not so many next time) without causing an uproar.

By: Nick Mclean

Nick Mclean — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 19:59:53 +0000

Rick: So you want to tell me Duesler was desperate and thats why he invited those kids back? If the life guard staff were inadequate so be it. He is rather putting them in danger by inviting them back.

The fact of the matter is we were informed not to do any interviews by the club and that makes me wonder. I’ve been a member of the club for quiet sometime now and I just dont know. I think the club or Duesler should explain why those other 2 camps were cancelled (I wouldnt want to use cancelled).
Duesler is a decent guy but shouldnt give in to some members of the club. I was at the meeting and had to leave because of the way some white members just like myself were ranting on and on. My kids go to school and in the same class with black kids so its very sad for them to see what is happening. My son asked me why Mr. X (who is an aquaintance from the club) is telling him not to swim with….

I’m also upset because My own club is not forth coming with everything that happened so I can imagine what the president of that day camp is feeling right now.

Is time we have to wake up in America and move on, and stop defending people we dont know, and hope for us all to change our attitudes. There is a saying a few bad apples…..

By: Rick Bayan

Rick Bayan — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 19:24:03 +0000

Nick: It’s great to hear from an actual eyewitness to the incident! I’m sure Duesler’s invitation to the kids (to return to the pool) was simply a desperate act of damage repair — especially given all the negative publicity generated by the incident. My big question is why he would have OK’d the contract with the predominantly black day camp in the first place, when the club had already canceled contracts with two other day camps. He had to know that the lifeguard staff was inadequate.

The unfortunate “complexion” gaffe had to be nothing more than a poor choice of words; if he were a racist, do you think he would have been dumb enough to be that blatant about it? I think he just meant that the overcrowding would create an unpleasant atmosphere at the club. I’ve heard that he’s a decent guy who would go out of his way to help minority kids. Any personal insights about the man?

And yes, I do feel sorry for the kids who got evicted from the pool; I said that much in my column. But I really don’t think it was a racially motivated incident on the part of the club. A few of the mothers were heard to utter some vaguely racist remarks (“What are all those black kids doing here?”) and that’s a shame, even though I can understand their concern. The club really should have notified the members that they were planning to invite the day camp to use the pool.

Anyway, thanks for responding. If you have any more light to shed on the incident, please feel free!

By: Nick Mclean

Nick Mclean — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 13:42:38 +0000

This is to Rick Bayan. You failed to mention Duesler inviting the kids back. If he is concerned about safety and overcrowding, why did he invite them back? We have to be sensitive and realistic. Do you think its okay to say the “completion” of the kids would affect the club?
I was at the club and the only people in the pool at that time were kids playing so forget about adults doing laps and all that.So your comment “I want to be able to swim in it. Not just hop around in the water, dodging bodies.” is not acceptable.
I was shocked when I went home and heard that on the news. Deusler is now using us, the members to cover his mistake
Just put yourself or your kids(If you have any)in those poor kid’s shoes….

By: Rick Bayan

Rick Bayan — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 02:58:38 +0000

The sad thing is that Mr. Duesler didn’t intend to create a racial brouhaha; his unfortunate (EXTREMELY unfortunate) reference to “complexion” was simply a comment on how all those kids would make the club seem more like a crowded public pool rather than a quiet oasis for swimmers… and of course he cited safety factors, too. I think that’s all legitimate. But the comments and actions by a few of the parents at the club reflect a deeper bias. Who knows… I might have reacted the same way if I saw 65 inner-city kids jump into the pool at our swim club. I’d definitely wonder what they were all doing there, simply because it would be a radical departure from business as usual. So in short, I don’t think the club (or the president of the club) should be faulted, except for not thinking ahead when they OK’d the use of their private pool by a day camp. But yes, the incident reveals that a lot of us are still prejudiced, at least in subtle ways.

By: Dudah

Dudah — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 02:05:52 +0000

I follow everything that was said and agree with most – I do wonder about the this statement and why it was lost in the above insightful discussion ??
*** Then Mr. Duesler proceeded to utter the lamentable word-fart heard ’round the world: “There was concern that a lot of kids would change the complexion … and the atmosphere of the club…”
It is that comment, and the need to categorize children as “black/white/brown/purple” rather than a simple statement “I paid my money to swim and I can’t” – that cause me to still linger and pause a little longer before I sing Kumbaya.