REHOBOTH BEACH, Del - Local surfers took to the water in a show of unity on Friday at the Indian River Inlet. The group, following the lead of Black Girls Surf, a global movement based in Senegal aimed at diversifying the surfing world, participated in a world-wide paddle out to memorialize George Floyd.
Before taking to the waves, the group met to discuss the purpose of the event, and took a collective knee in the sand for 8 minutes and 46 seconds. The amount of time police spent kneeling on Floyd's neck prior to his death in Minneapolis.
Carrying their boards and flowers, the surfers left shore forming a circle in the water, joining hands, and paying homage to Floyd as well as others who had lost their lives due to racial violence.
While creating space to call out racial injustice in society, those that participated in Friday's paddle out, also took time to acknowledge racial disparities that exist within the sport of surfing. “There’s a serious lack of diversity in surfing," said Adam Bernstein who attended the event. He attributed this disparity in part to geographical and financial accessibility issues.
Bernstein noted that spaces where issues of inequality are addressed like the paddle out are only one step towards combating a larger problem. He said that in order to begin to heal the wounds of systemic racism in the United States, white people need to engage in self-reflection, and listen to the voices of people of color.