Transcript:
MCCALLA: Usually when I’m bike riding, I see — I don’t know, just middle-age white men. I see female bike riders, but I never see any people of color, let alone women of color. So I just thought it was really important to just bring some awareness to that, and try to hopefully encourage other women of color to get on their bike and come for a ride.
AYRES-BROWN: Allyson, you grew up in Newport. Did you see or learn about inequity or racism in biking from an early age?
MCCALLA: Yeah, you know I didn’t realize it when I was younger, and it wasn’t until I was actually having a conversation with my mother. And she was just explaining to me that, when we were younger, on Christmas we’d tend to get a lot of the things that we wanted. So one Christmas, she got us all bicycles. And we would take these bicycles out, and like clockwork — each time we were out, we would get stopped by the police.
Because — at the time I didn’t think about it, but being an adult now I understand — we were young Black kids with these brand new bicycles.
And they would always ask us, ‘Where did you get those bicycles? Are they stolen?’ And so my mom finally came to the realization that she needed to give us something to hold on us. So that when we were pulled over — and I say ‘when’ and not ‘if’ because it was going to happen. So what she did is she went to work and she made copies of the receipts and she put them in our pockets, so that when we were pulled over by the police, we could pull them out and say ‘Here’s our receipt.’ My mother’s phone number was on there. Our address was on there, and the location where the bicycles were bought were on that receipt.
So that’s where, as an adult, I now know it really began at a very young age for me.
AYRES-BROWN: This will be Rhode Island’s first chapter of a national organization, Black Girls Do Bike. How would you describe the group’s mission?
MCCALLA: So Black Girls Do Bike — it’s an organization that encourages and supports women of color who share a passion for cycling. Just to come together and share stories, go on rides, share skills. So it’s really just a supportive organization for us women of color who really enjoy cycling.
AYRES-BROWN: What are some of the factors or barriers that you think contribute to the underrepresentation that you mentioned of women and girls of color in bicycling?
MCCALLA: I would say it’s, you know, a lack of confidence. Also some people just don’t know how to ride bikes — so it’s that, you know, their lack of skills. And also the uncomfortability of not seeing people who look like us on bicycles.
AYRES-BROWN: How has COVID-19 impacted the urgency of your goal, to make biking a more inclusive space?
MCCALLA: The best way to get some fresh air is to be outside. And being on a bicycle does just all of that — it’s health and wellness, it’s fun, you feel free. You can be outside, you’re socially distanced. You just get to see a lot more. And again, it feels better because we’re not allowed to go to gyms, so you’re getting your workout while on a bicycle.
AYRES-BROWN: I know the Newport chapter is new, but what kind of response are you seeing?
MCCALLA: I definitely have a lot more women of color reaching out to me through Facebook. So we have a Facebook group — it’s Black Girls Do Bike Newport. And so seeing a lot more women from all of Rhode Island joining the Facebook group. Right now we have over 200 members in the Facebook group. So I think that it’s growing, it’s needed, and really we just need allies in this as we do anything else.
AYRES-BROWN: And what will be the main activities of the group? Is it organized group rides, or lessons?
MCCALLA: Well the number one priority is just to get us all together — sharing skills, going for group rides, building that confidence, teaching bicycle education. And hopefully encouraging other women from other cities to start up their own Black Girls Do Bike in their city.
AYRES-BROWN: Allyson McCalla, organizer of the Newport chapter of Black Girls Do Bike, thanks very much for speaking with me.
MCCALLA: Thank you, Antonia. Thanks for having me.
Antonia Ayres-Brown is the Newport Reporter for The Public’s Radio. She can be reached at antonia@thepublicsradio.org
