Why so many Americans never learned to swim

In this powerful episode of Code Switch, host Gene Demby explores why millions of Americans—especially Black and Latino children—lack basic swimming skills, tracing the roots of this crisis to systemic racism and class inequality. The story centers on Jasmine Romero, a mid-30s writer and producer, who finally confronts her lifelong fear of water by enrolling in swim lessons. Her journey is deeply personal: her mother, raised in El Salvador with no access to swimming, passed down a generational anxiety rooted in trauma and fear of drowning. But Jasmine’s struggle isn’t just individual—it’s historical. Historian Jeff Wilti reveals how public swimming pools in the U.S. became tools of racial segregation in the 20th century, with Black Americans barred from pools in both the North and South, often through violence. As white families fled cities for suburbs and built private backyard pools, access to safe, supervised swimming became a privilege of class and race. This legacy left communities of color with limited access to swim instruction and a higher risk of drowning in natural bodies of water. Jasmine’s determination to learn isn’t just about personal growth—it’s about breaking a cycle of fear so her child won’t inherit it. The episode ends with a poignant vision: three generations of Romeros in the water together, symbolizing both healing and the long-overdue right to belong in the pool.