The deep irony of some instagram street skiers

[warm_diet_coke]

now I know this site isn’t know for being the most receptive to this stuff but surely other people find it extremely cringe how SOME street/park skiers appropriate african american culture. I’m not going to start naming individual people but we’ve all seen it, and this was touched on briefly in a previous thread by someone else. this seems to be especially prevalent in the younger instagram street skier demographic.

like get a grip, you have to be incredibly privileged to be skiing at all. regardless of whether you park/street ski etc rather than something more “traditional” and money-based such as racing, you are still doing something that requires not only money to get into, but is dominated by white people.

don’t get me wrong - the park/street scene is obviously the least money-driven area of skiing but it’s not exempt from what I’m saying. in fact, most of this cultural appropriation stuff seems to be perpetrated BY young park and street skiers.

these kids need to stop trying to act like they’re a marginalised person of colour. I’m working class and my parents don’t ski, I took it up in 2019 and I’m like a lot of the people on here - paying my way by sacrificing in other areas of my life. but I’m also white and can acknowledge how stupid it is for white kids to be going around skiing in durags, dropping the n-word etc. skiing is a white, wealthy sport and the reason I was introduced to it is because I had white, wealthy friends. that was my “in”. a lot of minorities don’t have that. so for these kids to dress and act the way they do is such a slap in the face to people of colour.

they can try to distance themselves from the money associated with skiing all they like but I have to laugh when these kids try and mimic the culture of a targeted minority just because they do a niche area of skiing. does no one see the utter irony in that? just because you’re not a ski racer or similar doesn’t mean you’re a minority. you’re (more likely than not) a wealthy white kid doing a niche sport.

for a lot of these kids, their white parents are the ones funding them either directly or indirectly so they can go out and hit rails at street spots all day. the least they can do is refrain from appropriating minority culture.

 

[SuspiciousFish]

I agree, White skiers should be square dancing instead. lol

Here is funny thing about "Cultural Appropriation", we are all about diversity and how America is a "Melting Pot" then when cultures mix together and borrow from each other everyone gets all butthurt like something was stolen. Timberlands were made originally for primarily White New England dock workers then they became a urban cultural icon due in part to artists like Biggie Smalls. Are people going to complain about that? Basically the entire EDM genre comes from Black Disco music- are we going to get pissed off at White artists like Deadmau5 or Pretty Lights? I rocked the fuck out in clubs in Denver with Black friends to those very artists and nobody gave a shit, we just got together to have a good time. Rock and Roll evolved from Blues which was Black music etc You literally would go crazy trying to unravel American culture to try to see what was borrowed from what. And even so whats the point?

You got into skiing in 2019 and think this is a new phenomenon? We had a whole decade of the 'thug era' of skiing.

Hip Hip is part of American youth culture, including skiing. White Kids like to listen to it and Black artists make money when they buy it. I would ague even that Hip Hop helped bring our generation past racism and had a common thread for White and Black people to enjoy. That was until the Woke movement ruined it all and actually created division.

If we want to help minorities, we should focus on the real economic issues hurting them like housing, lack of healthy food, no school funding, broken families and gang life. It gets to me when bleeding hearts run around complaining about topical issues that have no real bearing on improving peoples lives other than throwing a fit on the internet because some kid on tick tok hit a rail at his local school wearing a tall T with rap on his headphones. Hell, watch old Stept films and you will see Black kids in Boston come running up to watch and cheer for the crew wearing the kind of stuff you complain about. That shit made their week and was something cool to get stoked on together.

 

[ASSholebomber22]

now I know this site isn’t know for being the most receptive to this stuff but surely other people find it extremely cringe how SOME street/park skiers appropriate african american culture. I’m not going to start naming individual people but we’ve all seen it, and this was touched on briefly in a previous thread by someone else. this seems to be especially prevalent in the younger instagram street skier demographic.

like get a grip, you have to be incredibly privileged to be skiing at all. regardless of whether you park/street ski etc rather than something more “traditional” and money-based such as racing, you are still doing something that requires not only money to get into, but is dominated by white people.

don’t get me wrong - the park/street scene is obviously the least money-driven area of skiing but it’s not exempt from what I’m saying. in fact, most of this cultural appropriation stuff seems to be perpetrated BY young park and street skiers.

these kids need to stop trying to act like they’re a marginalised person of colour. I’m working class and my parents don’t ski, I took it up in 2019 and I’m like a lot of the people on here - paying my way by sacrificing in other areas of my life. but I’m also white and can acknowledge how stupid it is for white kids to be going around skiing in durags, dropping the n-word etc. skiing is a white, wealthy sport and the reason I was introduced to it is because I had white, wealthy friends. that was my “in”. a lot of minorities don’t have that. so for these kids to dress and act the way they do is such a slap in the face to people of colour.

they can try to distance themselves from the money associated with skiing all they like but I have to laugh when these kids try and mimic the culture of a targeted minority just because they do a niche area of skiing. does no one see the utter irony in that? just because you’re not a ski racer or similar doesn’t mean you’re a minority. you’re (more likely than not) a wealthy white kid doing a niche sport.

for a lot of these kids, their white parents are the ones funding them either directly or indirectly so they can go out and hit rails at street spots all day. the least they can do is refrain from appropriating minority culture

 

[ScaryDumpTruck]

Damn cultural appropriation his sponsors should drop him.

 

[Granby_killdozer]

Get fucked pussy, no one cares about your shitty take on the ski community. go complain on twitter ya fuckin kook

 

[warm_diet_coke]

now I know this site isn’t know for being the most receptive to this stuff but surely other people find it extremely cringe how SOME street/park skiers appropriate african american culture. I’m not going to start naming individual people but we’ve all seen it, and this was touched on briefly in a previous thread by someone else. this seems to be especially prevalent in the younger instagram street skier demographic.

like get a grip, you have to be incredibly privileged to be skiing at all. regardless of whether you park/street ski etc rather than something more “traditional” and money-based such as racing, you are still doing something that requires not only money to get into, but is dominated by white people.

don’t get me wrong - the park/street scene is obviously the least money-driven area of skiing but it’s not exempt from what I’m saying. in fact, most of this cultural appropriation stuff seems to be perpetrated BY young park and street skiers.

these kids need to stop trying to act like they’re a marginalised person of colour. I’m working class and my parents don’t ski, I took it up in 2019 and I’m like a lot of the people on here - paying my way by sacrificing in other areas of my life. but I’m also white and can acknowledge how stupid it is for white kids to be going around skiing in durags, dropping the n-word etc. skiing is a white, wealthy sport and the reason I was introduced to it is because I had white, wealthy friends. that was my “in”. a lot of minorities don’t have that. so for these kids to dress and act the way they do is such a slap in the face to people of colour.

they can try to distance themselves from the money associated with skiing all they like but I have to laugh when these kids try and mimic the culture of a targeted minority just because they do a niche area of skiing. does no one see the utter irony in that? just because you’re not a ski racer or similar doesn’t mean you’re a minority. you’re (more likely than not) a wealthy white kid doing a niche sport.

for a lot of these kids, their white parents are the ones funding them either directly or indirectly so they can go out and hit rails at street spots all day. the least they can do is refrain from appropriating minority culture

lol didn’t realise this would be a copypasta

 

[warm_diet_coke]

I agree, White skiers should be square dancing instead. lol

Here is funny thing about "Cultural Appropriation", we are all about diversity and how America is a "Melting Pot" then when cultures mix together and borrow from each other everyone gets all butthurt like something was stolen. Timberlands were made originally for primarily White New England dock workers then they became a urban cultural icon due in part to artists like Biggie Smalls. Are people going to complain about that? Basically the entire EDM genre comes from Black Disco music- are we going to get pissed off at White artists like Deadmau5 or Pretty Lights? I rocked the fuck out in clubs in Denver with Black friends to those very artists and nobody gave a shit, we just got together to have a good time. Rock and Roll evolved from Blues which was Black music etc You literally would go crazy trying to unravel American culture to try to see what was borrowed from what. And even so whats the point?

You got into skiing in 2019 and think this is a new phenomenon? We had a whole decade of the 'thug era' of skiing.

Hip Hip is part of American youth culture, including skiing. White Kids like to listen to it and Black artists make money when they buy it. I would ague even that Hip Hop helped bring our generation past racism and had a common thread for White and Black people to enjoy. That was until the Woke movement ruined it all and actually created division.

If we want to help minorities, we should focus on the real economic issues hurting them like housing, lack of healthy food, no school funding, broken families and gang life. It gets to me when bleeding hearts run around complaining about topical issues that have no real bearing on improving peoples lives other than throwing a fit on the internet because some kid on tick tok hit a rail at his local school wearing a tall T with rap on his headphones. Hell, watch old Stept films and you will see Black kids in Boston come running up to watch and cheer for the crew wearing the kind of stuff you complain about. That shit made their week and was something cool to get stoked on together.

bro while I agree with most of what you’re saying there’s no reason for white teenagers to be saying the n-word. and yeah I’m aware of what you’re talking about pre-2019. I’m just bringing up what I‘ve personally seen and experienced in recent years.

 

[sqeellicbic]

People who cry cultural appropriation never seem to belong to the culture they're "defending." Seems to be a recurring theme.

 

[50Kal]

bro while I agree with most of what you’re saying there’s no reason for white teenagers to be saying the n-word. and yeah I’m aware of what you’re talking about pre-2019. I’m just bringing up what I‘ve personally seen and experienced in recent years.

I mean how many kids out there saying the nword on Instagram? I’m really not following any urban skiers or many skier to be honest.

Or is this just happening at your hill with a bunch rich pricks?

 

[Isak_lonn]

I watch a bunch of this kind of skiing and I listen to 90 & 80s hip hop. I use baggy clothes while skiing and take a lot of inspiration from these artists. I don’t go around saying the n-word just cuz I like the style and have never heard anyone say the n-word doing this. Why just because I’m white should I feel like I can’t like this music and style. The fact that hip hop has become so dominant in freestyle skiing have become probably the least racist part of skiing. Yes skiing is hugely dominant by whites but this doesn’t make it bad for us to like the music and style. But I agree somewhat, I think it’s kinda silly that kids ski with durags especially when they don’t what you use a Durga fir. But I think this is the same ecery where, if I see a white Kia with a durag I will think it’s silly.

But hey if you want to talk trash to all of us who like hip hop, be my guest and go listen to your fucking Mozart since that is everything a white person should be allowed to listen to, right? Throw your self from a lift MF

 

[warm_diet_coke]

I watch a bunch of this kind of skiing and I listen to 90 & 80s hip hop. I use baggy clothes while skiing and take a lot of inspiration from these artists. I don’t go around saying the n-word just cuz I like the style and have never heard anyone say the n-word doing this. Why just because I’m white should I feel like I can’t like this music and style. The fact that hip hop has become so dominant in freestyle skiing have become probably the least racist part of skiing. Yes skiing is hugely dominant by whites but this doesn’t make it bad for us to like the music and style. But I agree somewhat, I think it’s kinda silly that kids ski with durags especially when they don’t what you use a Durga fir. But I think this is the same ecery where, if I see a white Kia with a durag I will think it’s silly.

But hey if you want to talk trash to all of us who like hip hop, be my guest and go listen to your fucking Mozart since that is everything a white person should be allowed to listen to, right? Throw your self from a lift MF

dune... not once have i brought up rap or hip-hop settle down

 

[teamdummy]

I seriously never hear any white kids dropping the n-bomb. Like ever.

 

[jakeordie]

Teenagers rebel against their upbringing as a way of becoming who they wanna be as an adult, and freeskiing is still new enough for the majority of today's teenagers to make them the first generation of their traditionally white, wealthy families to do it. So they probably relate to themes and imagery from black American culture more than you'd think.

 

[warm_diet_coke]

looks like the majority on this site clearly doesn’t agree with me, I’ll just accept that people have different opinions

 

[theabortionator]

A lot of people ski to hip hop. Getting really into hip hop they emulate the culture. It's a lot more that than people like "Yo im black" if theyre white.

Also skiing is more base on geography than wealth. Obviously wealth brings the ability to travel and the time to do it, but being close to snow and small ski areas is the biggest thing. Where I grew up was pretty rural and poor but there are small ski areas around it and pretty much everyone I knew skied.

Idk. I don't disagree that their aren't racial issues out there but I think people are reading too much into it sometimes.

Like that one dude a few weeks back who was arguing that people who didn't like geo tagging were racist.

Idk. I feel like people are just looking for fights sometimes.

 

[hi_vis360]

discussions like this are always a dumpster fire on ns, don't feel too bad lmao

I think where you're missing the mark is assuming that kids who listen to hip hop and think that rappers are cool are trying to act like a marginalized person of color. Homeis aren't shouting out "YO I GET UNFAIRLY TREATED BY POLICE" when they're dropping in, or "MY INNER CITY NEIGHBORHOOD IS A FOOD DESERT AND DOCTORS ARE BIASED AGAINST ME." They're probably quoting some dumb line by ski mask the slump god or whatever.

listening to rap and being inspired by the clothing =/= pretending to be black, also wu-tang is for the children

View attachment 991816

looks like the majority on this site clearly doesn’t agree with me, I’ll just accept that people have different opinions

 

[hi_vis360]

used to be more common like 10 ish years ago, when I was growing up homophobic and racist slurs were very common. it's gotten a lot better for sure which is awesome!

I seriously never hear any white kids dropping the n-bomb. Like ever.

 

[Butterytips69]

I seriously never hear any white kids dropping the n-bomb. Like ever.

The Fagans have entered the chat

 

[armchair_skier]

now I know this site isn’t know for being the most receptive to this stuff but surely other people find it extremely cringe how SOME street/park skiers appropriate african american culture. I’m not going to start naming individual people but we’ve all seen it, and this was touched on briefly in a previous thread by someone else. this seems to be especially prevalent in the younger instagram street skier demographic.

like get a grip, you have to be incredibly privileged to be skiing at all. regardless of whether you park/street ski etc rather than something more “traditional” and money-based such as racing, you are still doing something that requires not only money to get into, but is dominated by white people.

don’t get me wrong - the park/street scene is obviously the least money-driven area of skiing but it’s not exempt from what I’m saying. in fact, most of this cultural appropriation stuff seems to be perpetrated BY young park and street skiers.

these kids need to stop trying to act like they’re a marginalised person of colour. I’m working class and my parents don’t ski, I took it up in 2019 and I’m like a lot of the people on here - paying my way by sacrificing in other areas of my life. but I’m also white and can acknowledge how stupid it is for white kids to be going around skiing in durags, dropping the n-word etc. skiing is a white, wealthy sport and the reason I was introduced to it is because I had white, wealthy friends. that was my “in”. a lot of minorities don’t have that. so for these kids to dress and act the way they do is such a slap in the face to people of colour.

they can try to distance themselves from the money associated with skiing all they like but I have to laugh when these kids try and mimic the culture of a targeted minority just because they do a niche area of skiing. does no one see the utter irony in that? just because you’re not a ski racer or similar doesn’t mean you’re a minority. you’re (more likely than not) a wealthy white kid doing a niche sport.

for a lot of these kids, their white parents are the ones funding them either directly or indirectly so they can go out and hit rails at street spots all day. the least they can do is refrain from appropriating minority culture.

 

[-olives]

bro while I agree with most of what you’re saying there’s no reason for white teenagers to be saying the n-word. and yeah I’m aware of what you’re talking about pre-2019. I’m just bringing up what I‘ve personally seen and experienced in recent years.

my guy i literally ski every single day at a larger resort with a RANGE of different skiers. idk where you get the idea that were all just dropping n bombs left and right

 

[KCoCM]

OP ive thought the same thing many times when watching edits, but rather than be upset about it, its kinda comical. People grow up and realize ways they once talked and acted were inappropriate/ not who they are and thats that. Its not just street/park skiing people that do this, its in every facet of our culture. Part of being a teen/ young adult is thinking that your life is immensely harder than it actually is, so people resonate with music and lifestyles that they feel like they connect with on a deeper level. I love rap music but listening to shit that I loved as a kid, I still like it, but I also often stop and chuckle when i hear the lyrics and its like "damn, I cant believe I thought this shit was pertinent to my own life, that actually doesnt really apply to me at all" Hopefully people everywhere coming from positions of wealth and privilege eventually realize it and do what they can in their own lives to give back to those less fortunate.

 

[warm_diet_coke]

A lot of people ski to hip hop. Getting really into hip hop they emulate the culture. It's a lot more that than people like "Yo im black" if theyre white.

Also skiing is more base on geography than wealth. Obviously wealth brings the ability to travel and the time to do it, but being close to snow and small ski areas is the biggest thing. Where I grew up was pretty rural and poor but there are small ski areas around it and pretty much everyone I knew skied.

Idk. I don't disagree that their aren't racial issues out there but I think people are reading too much into it sometimes.

Like that one dude a few weeks back who was arguing that people who didn't like geo tagging were racist.

Idk. I feel like people are just looking for fights sometimes.

people think i’m saying white people can’t listen to rap or hip hop - that’s not what i said in the slightest. listen to whatever music you want

 

[F.W.Y.H]

I see kids expressing themselves how they want to express themselves. Rich doesn’t mean u have to express yourself in any kind of way. It’s also not your place to tell people which parts of the culture they are and are not allowed to use in their media and I don’t see many street crews taking more from black culture than music. White people can wear durags and the only people who have been caught saying the n word are the fagans. Give more concrete examples of African American appropriation.

You are also making an incorrect assumption that all rich people are privileged. Yes they have it easier financially but there are many other forms of marginalization that separate who has it easy vs who doesn’t. Looks, sexuality, how you talk, what clothes you wear and just about anything you could imagine are used to marginalize people out or bring people into social groups all the time.

 

[ASAPCarter]

We got degrees of black, nomsayin’, all kinds of different mahfuckas are different kinds of black, nomsayin? T is right here, and right here's Lionel Richie, 'cuz he ain't that black nomsayin', 'specially after he left the Commodores, he practically not black at all. Then you got your Michael Jackson, whos like a white-black, which ya know can be shortened to “wack”

 

[Kevski]

OP ive thought the same thing many times when watching edits, but rather than be upset about it, its kinda comical. People grow up and realize ways they once talked and acted were inappropriate/ not who they are and thats that. Its not just street/park skiing people that do this, its in every facet of our culture. Part of being a teen/ young adult is thinking that your life is immensely harder than it actually is, so people resonate with music and lifestyles that they feel like they connect with on a deeper level. I love rap music but listening to shit that I loved as a kid, I still like it, but I also often stop and chuckle when i hear the lyrics and its like "damn, I cant believe I thought this shit was pertinent to my own life, that actually doesnt really apply to me at all" Hopefully people everywhere coming from positions of wealth and privilege eventually realize it and do what they can in their own lives to give back to those less fortunate.

I think this really hits on it. The excitement in freestyle skiing around Black culture was totally admiration. Adopting elements of it was an homage to the strength of the culture and perseverance through adversity. These sources of inspiration were not only given credit, but openly idolized.

Think of park skiing's roots. At the beginning, park skiers were banned and kicked out of parks for what they wore on their feet. And racers and "elites" have looked down on park skiers as inferior from day one. Get stopped by yellow jackets more frequently because you wear baggy shit. Even though this is all trivial, as a teenager it feels like legitimate discrimination. Are you going to keep subscribing to the culture that doesn't want you or are you going to take inspiration from a culture that thrives and produces in spite of the system being built against it?

And even though I can now appreciate that the struggles don't compare and that a little teenage angst does not equate to systemic racism, the effect it left in the form of cultural admiration is still there.

I think this potentially left a whole lot of white suburban kids with a better appreciation for Black culture and compassion for people going through the struggle than would otherwise exist. Maybe that's why your accusations of appropriation aren't being particularly welcomed - they just feel misguided and misinformed.

 

[OCoffey]

Look good feel good ride good

 

[TRVP_ANGEL]

justice is served. great work man. Street skiers absolutely malding!

 

[Poikenz]

people think i’m saying white people can’t listen to rap or hip hop - that’s not what i said in the slightest. listen to whatever music you want

So what you are saying is that white people shouldn't act like black people? How do black people act? To me is sounds like you are stereotyping an entire race.

 

[nkwillie]

Overall I see what you're saying and I agree to a point, but I think this may have been a bit heavy handed. There's no denying that skiing benefits heavily from white privilege and that it's expensive to get into if you want to go consistently and advance your skiing. While skiing street isn't necessarily easily affordable, it is still the cheapest option around--so in a way it's almost a rebellion of the traditional expensive mountain experience*.

To me, it just feels like something is off in certain edits. I can never exactly put my finger on it but sometimes it feels like we don't do enough to acknowledge our white privilege in skiing. The fact that the black community is getting killed by police but white skiers just get kicked out of a zone by the police or even ski around them (directly disobeying them) and come home unscathed just to make an edit to a song that calls out police brutality and and its affect on the black community seems a bit tone deaf. I understand the influence that hip hop has on ski culture* and I think there is a good relationship there (listening to black artists is a great start in supporting them and hopefully at a minimum you're hearing their message), but there could be a better awareness of certain songs in edits for a sport heavily benefiting from white privilege.

*This whole topic is honestly really complicated, especially if you want to dive into the weeds of the fact that street skiing is influenced by street skating which has its own influences that are related to struggle and race and rebellion and hip hop...

 

[BianKarrett]

This right here. People whining and crying about cultural appropriation in America of all places is probably the dumbest thing to cry about. There’s bigger issues, people are who they are, skiing is just skiing. Stop trying to make everything an issue and let people ski how they want man. Considering you just started skiing a little over a year ago I don’t think you realize that street skiing actually is generally “gangster.” There’s lots of confrontation with cops and homeowners and so much rushing to get clips before dealing with those people. It’s not a “white sport” where you pay money and are guaranteed a chairlift and ski patrol on hill to keep you safe lmao you’re IN DA STREETZ

I agree, White skiers should be square dancing instead. lol

Here is funny thing about "Cultural Appropriation", we are all about diversity and how America is a "Melting Pot" then when cultures mix together and borrow from each other everyone gets all butthurt like something was stolen. Timberlands were made originally for primarily White New England dock workers then they became a urban cultural icon due in part to artists like Biggie Smalls. Are people going to complain about that? Basically the entire EDM genre comes from Black Disco music- are we going to get pissed off at White artists like Deadmau5 or Pretty Lights? I rocked the fuck out in clubs in Denver with Black friends to those very artists and nobody gave a shit, we just got together to have a good time. Rock and Roll evolved from Blues which was Black music etc You literally would go crazy trying to unravel American culture to try to see what was borrowed from what. And even so whats the point?

You got into skiing in 2019 and think this is a new phenomenon? We had a whole decade of the 'thug era' of skiing.

Hip Hip is part of American youth culture, including skiing. White Kids like to listen to it and Black artists make money when they buy it. I would ague even that Hip Hop helped bring our generation past racism and had a common thread for White and Black people to enjoy. That was until the Woke movement ruined it all and actually created division.

If we want to help minorities, we should focus on the real economic issues hurting them like housing, lack of healthy food, no school funding, broken families and gang life. It gets to me when bleeding hearts run around complaining about topical issues that have no real bearing on improving peoples lives other than throwing a fit on the internet because some kid on tick tok hit a rail at his local school wearing a tall T with rap on his headphones. Hell, watch old Stept films and you will see Black kids in Boston come running up to watch and cheer for the crew wearing the kind of stuff you complain about. That shit made their week and was something cool to get stoked on together.