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RESEARCH ARTICLE: Speaking of Justice: Exploring Ethnic Minority Perspectives of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 November 2011

Nina S. Roberts  and
Tendai Chitewere
Nina S. Roberts*
Affiliation:
PhD, Associate Professor, Department of Recreation, Parks, and Tourism, San Francisco State University, San Francisco, California
Tendai Chitewere
Affiliation:
Assistant Professor, Department of Liberal Studies, San Francisco State University, San Francisco, California
*
Nina S. Roberts, Department of Recreation, Parks, and Tourism, San Francisco State University, 1600 Holloway Drive, HSS 307, San Francisco, CA 94132; (phone) 415-338-7576; (fax) 415-338-0543; (e-mail) nroberts@sfsu.edu
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Abstract

The Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA), one of the most highly visited national parks in the United States, is an important cultural symbol in the San Francisco Bay Area. Traditionally absent groups are expressing a desire to enjoy the benefits associated with outdoor recreation including public lands that may be lesser known to them. Understanding how national parks are used by ethnic minorities is of increasing importance to both the public and the National Park Service. In 2006, the GGNRA commissioned a focus-group study with nearly 100 people of color living in the Bay Area to provide indicators of constraints to park use. While identifying physical, mental, and spiritual benefits of access to nature in parks, many participants expressed frustration with limited physical access, subtle racism, and general exclusion from the culture of parks as reasons why they avoid these public spaces. The results of this study corroborate over four decades of research on park constraints. This article presents results of narratives provided by those who experience constraints and their desire to participate. For national parks to become representative of the people they serve, we suggest the need to mitigate silent exclusion and move toward proactive inclusion both inside and outside the parks. Key considerations include outreach through more intentional communication strategies, multilingual signage, responding to complaints of discrimination, and more representative hiring practices.

Environmental Practice 13:354–369 (2011)

Type
Features
Information
Environmental Practice , Volume 13 , Issue 4 , December 2011 , pp. 354 - 369
Copyright
Copyright © National Association of Environmental Professionals 2011

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