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Why Are Minority Children In The US More Likely To Drown?

Black children are three times more likely to drown in the United States than white children. This hour, we learn the history behind this deadly disparity.

And we’ll talk with New Haven nonprofit LEAP about how they are taking on this problem one swimmer at a time.

Plus, how can schools address the “summer slide”?  

Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter.

GUESTS:

READING LIST:

The Guardian: Swimming while black: the legacy of segregated public pools lives on - “In the US, swimming ability is starkly divided along racial lines…The consequences of this can be deadly: according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, black children aged five to 14 are three times more likely to die from unintentional drowning than their white counterparts. In the US, approximately 10 people die from unintentional drowning every day.”

NPR: Public Swimming Pools’ Divisive Past – “When federal courts desegregated municipal pools in the late 1940s and early 1950s, white swimmers generally abandoned municipal pools. They did not build as many new pools as they had previously, they neglected maintenance on existing pools, and eventually chose to close down dilapidated pools rather than pay for costly repairs.”

New Haven Independent: New Lifeguards Minted - “Eden said LEAP reopened its pool in 2014 with a goal of teaching every child who comes through the doors how to swim. Of those 1,200 children who come each year, 92 percent are either black or Hispanic, and 65 percent of them don’t know how to swim. LEAP wanted to make sure that the kids had a basic skill that would help them avoid a preventable death from drowning.”

Chion Wolf contributed to this show.

Lucy leads Connecticut Public's strategies to deeply connect and build collaborations with community-focused organizations across the state.
Carmen Baskauf was a producer for Connecticut Public Radio's news-talk show Where We Live, hosted by Lucy Nalpathanchil from 2017-2021. She has also contributed to The Colin McEnroe Show.

The independent journalism and non-commercial programming you rely on every day is in danger.

If you’re reading this, you believe in trusted journalism and in learning without paywalls. You value access to educational content kids love and enriching cultural programming.

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Federal funding for public media is under threat and if it goes, the impact to our communities will be devastating.

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Your voice has protected public media before. Now, it’s needed again. Learn how you can protect the news and programming you depend on.

SOMOS CONNECTICUT is an initiative from Connecticut Public, the state’s local NPR and PBS station, to elevate Latino stories and expand programming that uplifts and informs our Latino communities. Visit CTPublic.org/latino for more stories and resources. For updates, sign up for the SOMOS CONNECTICUT newsletter at ctpublic.org/newsletters.

SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

The independent journalism and non-commercial programming you rely on every day is in danger.

If you’re reading this, you believe in trusted journalism and in learning without paywalls. You value access to educational content kids love and enriching cultural programming.

Now all of that is at risk.

Federal funding for public media is under threat and if it goes, the impact to our communities will be devastating.

Together, we can defend it. It’s time to protect what matters.

Your voice has protected public media before. Now, it’s needed again. Learn how you can protect the news and programming you depend on.

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