Solidarity in Surfing

Black Girls Surf and World Surf League held a safe paddle out for “Solidarity in Surfing” at Santa Monica Inkwell Beach Tower 20 last Friday afternoon. The historic Inkwell Beach has been a place African Americans could feel safe while enjoying the ocean together and is just one of the dozens of locations where paddle outs are occurring all over the world from Senegal, to Sydney, to North Carolina, to Monterey. In 2008, the importance of this location was recognized by the city of Santa Monica with a plaque to honor Nick Gabaldon, the first historical African American and Hispanic local surf hero, and to unite the black and Hispanic communities through a time of racial tension. The purpose was to return to Inkwell Beach intentionally in peace during a time of racial tension to honor George Floyd and those lives lost to police brutality. Black Girls Surf’s mission is to “encourage and inspire young women of color in the surfing community by assisting them to compete locally and professionally”