N. Miami PD to drop swimming test

[osprey4]

In an attempt to attract more Black applicants, the North Miami Police Department is dropping their swimming requirement.

Apparently, an Haitian-American city councilman asked police to drop the requirement because he said blacks historically can't swim.

Say what?

[Epidemic]

Great. Now my kid falls in the water in front of a cop and he is no longer able to save my child.

How bout this. You teach the cops to swim and keep the standard.

Calling it a racist test is rediculous statement. Blacks are no more or less able to swim. Merely have not been trained in the art of swimming. I can see swimming as a valuable asset in a Miami police officer.

It is not like having a requirement to get sunburned in 20 minutes which would be a useless racist requirement.

[ExSuS]

Blacks cant swim? Eh I have black friends who can swim as good as anybody.I live in miami and I see plenty of blacks at the beach whenever I go.I dont know what these people are talking about.

[Epidemic]

In my statistical analysis of what I have seen I would say that more blacks do not learn to swim than whites.

Be this socio-economic, cultural, or genetic I can't say. I can with conviction say that it is not likely genetic. But generally speaking after speaking with 3 x navy guys I found universal experience of between 50% and 70% of blacks going through our boot camps had difficulty passing swimming proficiency on first test. While well beyond 95% of whites in our company passed with out a hitch. side observation as navy involves boats I find it strange so many black guys joined knowing they would be surrounded by water unable to swim.

The beach example may not be the best example either as beach swimmers are actually mostly waders. many people in the water are not swimming but rather jumping and standing in the water.

[chipbgt]

This makes me laugh so hard. I consider myself pretty policitally incorrect but even I know this is such a huge stereotype.

[Chuckiechan]

I'd like to see a cop swim with his fully loaded belt, guns, cuffs, ammo, mace, kevlar vest.

But, none the less, I think a cop should be taken to a pool in a swimming suit and taught to swim to prevent panic in a water emergency.

[osprey4]

Originally posted by chipbgt
This makes me laugh so hard. I consider myself pretty policitally incorrect but even I know this is such a huge stereotype.

If a Haitian thinks up this idea, it's a stereotype. If a white guy comes up with this idea, it's called something else (and he's quickly fired).

[sao95]

Originally posted by Epidemic
In my statistical analysis of what I have seen I would say that more blacks do not learn to swim than whites.

Be this socio-economic, cultural, or genetic I can't say. I can with conviction say that it is not likely genetic. But generally speaking after speaking with 3 x navy guys I found universal experience of between 50% and 70% of blacks going through our boot camps had difficulty passing swimming proficiency on first test. While well beyond 95% of whites in our company passed with out a hitch. side observation as navy involves boats I find it strange so many black guys joined knowing they would be surrounded by water unable to swim.

The beach example may not be the best example either as beach swimmers are actually mostly waders. many people in the water are not swimming but rather jumping and standing in the water.

having been through navy bootcamp I found that most blacks had a hard time with the swimming part, most weren't poor swimmers, they just didn't know how, I always wondered why that was, it would be interesting to some sort of reasonable explanation as to why.

[Pexster]

My parents moved to Southern California when I was ten. We lived in a Mexican-American neighborhood about 1/3 mile from the beach. Imagine my surprise when almost all of my new friends told me they couldn't swim! They didn't go to the beach because they were afraid of the water. Never did figure that out.

[Epidemic]

It is not racism, stereotype... it is observation.

Like I said before I am not sure if it is socio-economic, cultural or what. But it is a fact that I have observed this in my sphere of interaction with people.

I do know that every non swimming black person in my boot camp company learned to swim before the end of BASIC. So it is not an inability. i also know that several could swim when we got to boot camp so there is not a universal cultural norm to not being able to swim.