Episode 73: On the Rich Aquatic History of the Black Diaspora with Naji Ali

**our apologies for the audio issues at the r beginning of this episode!**

On this episode of The End of Sport, Johanna and Derek chat with Naji Ali, producer and host of Crossing the Lane Lines podcast, to discuss the role that swimming has played in his life, the rich aquatic history of the Black diaspora, and the white supremacist history of modern swimming and USA Swimming’s complicity. Naji provides so much detail and nuance about his experiences with racism in and out of the pool and how that continues to influence the wonderful work he does now with the swimming community in San Francisco.

 

Naji Ali is the producer and host of Crossing the Lane Lines, a podcast that highlights the achievements, struggles, and activism in, on, or near the water for Black folk. The podcast is dedicated to giving voice to the Black Swim community by connecting with coaches, swimmers, authors and activists. Naji is a long distance open water swimmer, who swims year around, without a wetsuit, in San Francisco Bay, as well as the Pacific Ocean. He is also a Total immersion Swim Coach, who specifically teaches Black and Brown children and adults how to swim, at whatever cost they can afford.

 

You can check out Naji’s interview with Johanna on the Crossing the Lane Lines podcast here.

 

For a transcription of this episode, please click here. (Updated semi-regularly Credit @punkademic)

Research Assistance for The End of Sport provided by Abigail Bomba.

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