The Joy Trip Reading Project discussion

We're kicking off the Joy Trip Reading Project with
Black Faces, White Spaces: Reimagining the Relationship of African Americans to the Great Outdoors
This remarkable book demonstrates the importance of narrative storytelling as a way to define one's place in the natural world. If you've read it please share your thoughts. If you have questions share them on this discussion page. The author Dr. Carolyn Finney will join our group in January 2021 for a live question and anwser discussion on ZOOM. To stay up to date on details for this and other upcoming conversations on diversity, equity and inclusion outdoor recreation and environmental conservation subscribe at http://www.joytripproject.com

Love this book! I’ve read it twice this year, and we (a black co-facilitator and I, a white woman - both of us backpackers) have been using it to facilitate dialogues on race in the outdoors in our outdoor community in Pittsburgh. We’ve seen many “a-ha” moments from folks waking up to systemic racism in the outdoors while processing this book. Finney does a wonderful job telling truths and histories that have been hidden and asks the reader to consider “whose story is being told?” My favorite quote from the book: “our unhealthy relationships with the natural environment are intimately linked to our unhealthy relationships to each other.” I only wish there was a version of this book or something similar that was less academic. Many readers struggle to get through the academic writing, but it is well worth the struggle for those that make it. Currently reading Dorceta Taylor for the first time, which is similarly information rich and hyper-academic. Thanks for hosting this group, James!

I just suggested this book to my library because I went to borrow it digitally and the county doesn't own it. When I spoke to the director of the AMC's Youth Opportunities Program in November, she mentioned that they've been using this book to train their educators. That way, they're not just teaching outdoor survival skills to communities of color, but also incorporating conservation literature from people other than Muir and Pinchot.

TCampbell wrote: "I just suggested this book to my library because I went to borrow it digitally and the county doesn't own it. When I spoke to the director of the AMC's Youth Opportunities Program in November, she ..."
Thanks so much for putting in the effort and sharing your interest in this topic. We can't learn enough about the experiences of those other than ourselves.

I read this book a couple years ago and it was eye opening as far as transforming my understanding of public lands and spaces and how it has favored white people and erased people of color. The story of the Great Outdoors is the story of America. Changing our narrative around the outdoors and who belongs there is how we can change the American narrative of who belongs here.

Shannon wrote: "I read this book a couple years ago and it was eye opening as far as transforming my understanding of public lands and spaces and how it has favored white people and erased people of color. The sto..."
So very true Shannon! That understanding is is at the core of this discussion group.

Page 75: "Arguing that the assumption that an American collective identity is not grounded in ethnicity, historical particularities, or cultural traditions, but more on citizenship, she [Rebecca Kook] points out how African Americans were routinely excluded from participating in the spoils that American collective identity afforded others."

I am both confused about and intrigued by this sentence. Confused because the sentence construction does not seem right, as if there are too many words, but also a missing piece. What is "the assumption" here? That American collective identity is based on citizenship and not ethnicity, historical particularities, or cultural traditions, or that the identity IS based on ethnicity, etc.? To say "arguing that the assumption that..." suggests there is a rejoinder coming against the assumption, but instead this clause is a preface to the next one in which Kook "points out how African Americans were excluded" from the identity and its benefits. There is no rejoinder. Instead, an observation is offered in support of the idea that American collective identity is indeed based on something besides ethnicity.

However, what intrigues me about this sentence is the notion of American collective identity being based solely on citizenship, a formal, legal designation. I have to agree with that. I do not think it is an assumption. I think it's a truism. Many citizens, or members of American society, do not recognize the diverse ethnicities, historical particularities, or cultural traditions" that compose our nation and our identities as Americans (except perhaps in stereotypical ways). We do not see ourselves as a nation of immigrants, but instead view non-citizens as "other", or perhaps more accurately, we view citizens who have a non-white history/ethnicity as "other", refusing to recognize or even questioning their citizenship.

Am I correctly understanding what Dr. Finney is saying, or am I missing something?

Actually Ted, I think you understand what Dr. Finney is saying perfectly. The sentence structure is a bit clunky, but I believe the overall point is well made. People of color are often not given the benifit of the doubt that their cultural and ethnic identities as United States citizens is every bit as valid as their white counterparts. As you point out indeed there is no rejoinder. Simply put " African Americans were routinely excluded from participating in the spoils that American collective identity afforded others." In many ways that is the thesis of the entire book. Thoughts?

I agree with you, James. And you're right: it is indeed the thesis of the entire book. But that statement is such a finer point than to simply say "racism", "discrimination", or "inequality", all of which are more like hash tags than an actual description of the situation. "American collective identity is not grounded in ethnicity, historical particularities, or cultural traditions, but more on citizenship." Pow! There it is.

Kelly Henderson, I agree with you that this is academic style of writing is not for everyone! It is taking me longer than expected to read, and fully absorp, the many important points. Dr. Taylor was my academic advisor, and I never finished reading her book. You have inspired me to make it through this year.