Title: “South Asians in ‘The Great Outdoors’: Navigating Racialized Experiences Rock Climbing in Canada”
Supervisor: Dr. Moss Norman
Committee members: Dr. Erica Bennett, Dr. Yuka Nakamura
Abstract: Throughout my 25-year experience in outdoor rock climbing, there has been a marked absence of South Asian participation. Given that there are over 2 million South Asians living in Canada (Statistics Canada, 2017), this absence feels curious and deeply problematic for a number of reasons. First, as sports and connecting with nature have been shown to significantly increase wellbeing (Galdwell, 2013), it stands to reason that barriers to the full participation of South Asians in outdoor sport has negative impacts on their health and wellbeing. Moreover, ‘The Great Outdoors’ is part of Canada’s national identity, thus tying outdoor engagement to the ideals of nationhood (Gilbert, 2008; Mackey, 2010) and rendering those absent from the outdoors as less than full citizens. Notwithstanding this observed absence, I am not aware of any studies that examine South Asian experiences in rock climbing specifically, or outdoor recreation more generally. However, a small body of scholarship exists around diasporic South Asian sports engagement and around racialized populations and the outdoors. Under a critical race theory (CRT) framework, I will address two questions: (1) how South Asian climbers negotiate their racial identities within the pervasive White spaces of the outdoor climbing community; and (2) how the presence of their racialized bodies align with, resist or disrupt climbing cultural norms and ideologies. My research design will include three data construction methods: (1) observations from a day of outdoor rock climbing; (2) an on-site focus group discussion; and (3) an online questionnaire related to a photopiece of South Asians rock climbing outdoors. While the focus group prioritizes hearing the voices of those affected by the socio-cultural conditions of climbing in Canada, the questionnaire will focus on understanding the conditions themselves, which are in part created through the attitudes of other climbers. This study stands to make both research and practical or action-oriented contributions. In terms of research, this study aims to fill the gap in the existing sociology of sport literature on the South Asian experience of rock climbing. Practically, this project is premised on the assumption that a better understanding of the condition of South Asian Canadians in outdoor rock climbing, will serve to foster culturally safe and relevant climbing experiences for all South Asians.