A team of black mountain climbers is attempting to climb Everest to tackle what one member described as the sport’s “colonial history”.
The world’s highest peak has been conquered more than 10,000 times since Sir Edmund Hillary and Sherpa Tenzing Norgay scaled it first in 1953. Only a few of the successful climbers have been black, however.
A team of nine aim to add their names to the list in May. Rosemary Saal, 28, a teacher from Seattle, is among those joining the Full Circle Everest Expedition. She said that a team of black climbers conquering the mountain would help “change the narrative”.
“I hear ‘black people don’t do that’ all the time when I talk about my climbing,” she told The Washington Post. “That only perpetuates the stereotypes. It’s important to change the narrative.”
The first American to climb Everest was Jim Whittaker in 1963, two years before President Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act into law, prohibiting racial discrimination at the polls.
Saal added: “It’s hugely significant to contribute to representation in these outdoor spaces. There’s been an intentional lack of access for black people.”
The Full Circle group is being sponsored by major mountaineering brands. A team’s attempt to scale Everest can cost more than $100,000. Saal said that companies were seeing the value in being associated with attempts to diversify the activity.
“The expedition is very timely,” she said. “Many brands and organisations are beginning to recognise the colonial history of mountain climbing.”
