Order for a hearing to discuss Increasing Access to Swimming Lessons and Awareness of Water Safety. On motion of Councilors Flynn and Lara, rule 12 was invoked to include Councilor Fernandes Anderson as a co-sponsor.
Mr. Kirk, would you please read the docket number 0546. Counsel of Counsel as Flynn and Larry offer the following. Order for a hearing to discuss increasing access to swimming lessons in awareness of water safety. Councilor Flynn, you have the floor. Thank you, Madam Chair. May I suspend Rule 12 and add Councilor Fernandez Anderson as an original co-sponsor. Seeing no objections? Councilor Fernandez Anderson is added as a third co-sponsor. Thank you, Councilor Edwards. Thank you to my colleagues, Counsel Fernandez innocent and counsel Lara as well. This hearing order would be to address the important role that swimming can play in our city. Our city is surrounded by the ocean. And. 60 60% of the of the young people that drowned across across the country are communities of color. Many of them many of them don't have access to swimming lessons. So this this hearing a lot of, too, would be to address the important role swimming plays in our city and to encourage us to encourage cyf to provide free or reduced swimming lessons to children across Boston. Children with disabilities and children. Children of color. But but all children to make sure that they have access to swimming lessons. It's a critical it's a critical aspect of of life in Boston. As I mentioned, we're surrounded by the oceans. We also have many pools across the city that are shut down right now for various reasons. This would be a tremendous opportunity for us to run the budget process to address those issues as well. We also need more lifeguards across the city. It's important to train young people about first aid, but also about about the important role swimming plays in our society, in our city. So I'm excited about this hearing water. It's a public health issue. It's also a public safety issue as well. And all kids in Boston should have access to free swimming lessons and glad to partner with Council Fernandez Anderson and Council Elvira on on this hearing. I want to thank you. Thank you. The chair recognizes counsel there. Thank you, Chair. And thank you to President Flynn for continuing to be a champion on this work and this issue and. To Councilor Fernandez Anderson for co-sponsoring this matter. With us. There's been a lot of recent discussion about pool closures in the city, and it's really been centered around pool usage. And I believe that we're really having the wrong conversation. I don't think that we can look at pool usage in a vacuum without asking why. Why do some. People take advantage of public pools and why and why others don't? And I think that the answer to that. Lies in a historical policy failure that's going to take a policy solution. To fix. According to the Center for Disease Control. Black children drown at a rate of almost three times that of white and Latino children. And the Massachusetts Department of Public Health reported that black children made up 25%. Of drownings all across the state. Even though they're only 9% of the child population in Massachusetts. These kind of racial disparities in swimming traced back to segregation. Ultimately, when black people weren't allowed to swim in public or private pools and. Even some beaches, and they. Persisted today. So I think that access, knowledge and. Safety are all driving factors in pool usage. And if we want to ensure that all communities are benefiting from our city facilities, we have to tackle the root causes behind the decline in usage. I am a black woman and I. Don't know how to swim. Don't worry, I'm working on it. But I have the privilege of raising a little boy. Who loves the water almost as much as he loves his momma. And I wish that every parent and child in Boston could share in that joy. Regardless of their race or neighborhood. And increasing access to swim lessons. And awareness on water safety is one way that we can move the needle towards equity and truly work to democratize access to recreation in the city of Boston. Thank you. Thank you. The chair recognizes Councilor Fernandes Anderson. I know how to swim. So most of you know that I was born and raised up to the age of ten in a West African country. It's an archipelago of ten islands. And I always talk about, you know, if you don't know, this was a used as a port for transatlantic trade, slave trade. So it deeply connects with the fact that we come from a land of abundance and swimming and fish and oceans. Right. And we can't swim here or our children swim can't swim less than other populations. So I, of course, strongly encourage everyone to support this. And as well as I think there's an opportunity here for us to also include other communities such as. So now that I'm all grown and you see me cover my goods and stuff, right? I cannot swim in public pools because I have to cover my body. And so as a muslim woman, we would have to have non coed swimming days. And so I would like to open up the floor to discuss in how that way of and they've been very helpful. But I think there has been some sort of, you know, bureaucratic issues in terms of scheduling women only swimming days. So I think this is a wonderful opportunity for us to be all inclusive in how we include communities of color, in teaching swimming lessons, love to swim sometimes with you so I can give you some lessons and include women only swimming as well with the Islamic community included. Thank you so much. Does anyone wish to speak on this matter? Anyone else? Does anyone wish to add their name? The clerk could please add. Counselor Baker. Counselor Bok. Counselor Braden. Counselor Flaherty. Counselor the region. Counselor Murphy and counselor while. Docket 0546 will be assigned to the Committee on Strong Women, Families and Communities. Thank you, Councilor Edwards. Mr. Clarke, please read docket 0547 Duncan m0547 Council's Louisianan. Worrell offered the following order for a hearing to utilize American Rescue Plan Act, Federal and State COVID Recovery Funds to create housing options for returning citizens.