Abstract
Tiffany G. Chenault on claiming space and building community by hitting the road.
January in Boston means Boston Marathon training—regardless of the winter weather. This is a global running city, and recreational running is a big thing. You will see runners tracing the marathon route and spread throughout the city. And even here, it’s no secret that long-distance running (e.g., 5k,10k, half-marathon, and marathon races) is deemed a White hobby, with the professional level reserved for “Africans.” Invisible in this narrative are American-born Black women and men runners.
I am an African-American woman who did not start running until I was in my late 30s. When I started my running journey in my Boston neighborhood, I realized quickly that none of my fellow runners looked like me. Participating in races, I was often the only woman of color (or just one of a few). One consequence of being a visible outsider in the sport was that, even after running a marathon and several half marathons, I did not think of myself as “a runner.”
My identity as a runner only solidified when I ran the Trenton Double Cross Half Marathon and 10k in 2015. Of the race’s 3,000 participants, 20% were Black women. I had never seen anything like it. There were Black women of all different body shapes and sizes, ages, black and brown skin tones, and different kinds of hair textures and styles. These women traveled from New York, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Texas to run this race. Though this experience, I saw that we were runners.
These are not the women seen on running magazine covers or portrayed in the running industry’s image of what a runner, especially a woman runner, looks like. For instance, I did a content analysis of the cover of Runner’s World magazine, an industry flagship, from January 1987 to June 2016. Of the 374 people on the covers, 350 were White (93.6%), 18 were Black (5%), 4 were Asian (1%), and 2 were Middle-Eastern (.5%). White women were the most represented demographic (61.5%), followed by White men (32.1%). These demographics mirror those collected by the 2017 National Runner Survey conducted by Running USA. Among long-distance runners, the survey found that respondents identified as 84% White, 4% Hispanic, 7% Black, 6% Asian, 1% American Indian, and 1% as some other race/ethnicity.
Nevertheless these national surveys also indicate more Black Americans are running and participating in recreational running. In part, this can be seen in the increased visibility of Black women in running groups such as Black Girls Run! (BGR), National Black Marathoners Association, GurlRun, HarlemRun, Black Girls Rock 50 States, Black Greek Running Connection, and Black Runners Connection. Black Girl Run! was founded in 2009 by sorority sisters Toni Carey and Ashley Hicks-Rocha. Its mission is to reduce health conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes, and heart disease that Black women are at greater risk for developing. BGR has over 80 chapters and 200,000 members nationwide.
What led these women into recreational running? As a sociologist, African-American woman, and runner I started exploring this question by running a half marathon in every state, joining Black running groups, and creating a survey to understand my running community. I found that Black women runners’ needs and intersectional experiences of race, gender, and class are unique.
Stereotypes of Black Women Running
Though Black women are rarely included in the “runner” identity, when they are, their images often reflect racialized stereotypical narratives. Given the predominant framing of women runners as White women running, it is perhaps not surprising that when running magazines such as Runner’s World and Women’s Running and advertisements for races or shoes do include Black women, they tend to favor tall, thin, light-skinned Black women as the ones who “look like a runner.” This reflects the ongoing colorism in society that favors light-skinned women, as discussed by sociologist Margaret Hunter.
Typical depictions of Black women runners collapse the true diversity of this community.
Other coverage has intensified, especially recently, around big, dark, fat women runners who confirm the “mammy” stereotype Patricia Hill Collins has identified as a major controlling image for Black women in American society. This is seen in the popularity of a blog by Mirna Valerio called Fat Girl Running. She is a larger African-American woman who runs marathons and ultra-marathons. Valerio has made a name for herself in the running industry and was recently on the cover of Women’s Running.
Although representations of all Black women running are a welcome addition to the sporting landscape, these two dominating images nevertheless ignore (and ultimately erase) the complex diversity among African-American women who participate in recreational running. They do not represent the women I ran with in Trenton.
Runners from Boston’s chapter of Black Girls Run celebrate after a race.
Author courtesy
Another race in the books: the Williams Route 66 Marathon in Oklahoma.
Community among Black Women Runners
As a member of and ambassador for the Boston chapter of BGR, I have asked our 1,600 members why they joined BGR or other Black women’s running groups. The response is always the same: community, sisterhood, and developing a healthy lifestyle. I also found that most Black women runners started after the age of 30, because they saw another Black woman running or a friend asked them to go running. Black women also ran to lose weight, release stress, and address health concerns. Although these reasons may, on their face, seems similar to any runner’s reasons for hitting the pavement, Black women’s reasons are further bound in connections by social class, hair, and racial support.
Scholars such as Maxine Leeds Craig have noted that Black women’s hair has been historically caught up in the politics of personal and racial pride. Part of the racial connection of sisterhood is in hair politics. Many runners have natural hair, braids, weaves, locks, twists, short hair, or even no hair. The head gear commonly worn by White women doesn’t always work for Black women’s hair, and something as simple as having hats lined with silk interiors will prevent hair breakage for Black women. I have seen Black women run wearing silk scarves or even shower caps when it rains. Other women have discussed seeing their beautician every two weeks or changing their hairstyles because of running.
Maria, a member of BGR Boston, told me she switched from having a perm with long straight hair to going natural because it made it easier for running. BGR and communities like it matter for disseminating these strategies in ways that help other Black women take up the sport. In my survey of 207 Black women who run, 66% responded that their hair care practices didn’t affect how often or when they run, because they talked with other Black women and even consulted their hairdressers on maintenance of their hair. I normally wash my hair every two weeks. Since I started running, I have to rinse and condition my hair after every run.
Despite appearances, recreational running is not cheap. The cost of running a race can range from $300 to $2,000 when you add race registration, travel, lodging, food, and being able to take the time off from a job. Having the appropriate “gear” is also essential, including shoes (replaced every 6-12 months), clothing, and other assorted paraphernalia. Among my survey participants, 17% spend between $300- $500 on running each year, while 22% of Black women said they spent more than $2,000. Stephanie, a runner from Florida who is also running a half marathon in every state, told me that she’s able to travel and run these races because her church took up a collection to support her journey.
Creating Space for Black Women Running
Stephanie’s story highlights the importance of neighborhood and community dynamics. Most cities are still racially segregated and sprawling. Boston’s Roxbury neighborhood, the home of Malcolm X and New Edition, is the historic center of its Black community. It’s also a central location for BGR’s weekly runs. Our population is small compared to larger cities with more African-Americans like New York, Chicago, and Atlanta. Visibility and access to other Black women who run may look different across these contexts.
There is a growing number of Black women and other people of color who are recreational runners. It is important for Black women who run to define themselves and their unique experiences in this space. Having this knowledge and understanding of intersectionality can make the sport more inclusive and change how the running industry markets and creates running events. Black and other minority women can take advantage and benefit from the health, community, and social outcomes of running, helping evolve it from its reputation as a “White sport” to a community-strengthening and inclusive activity.
