For a culture that is built on subverting the conventional, the skateboarding community must strive to create more diverse spaces. What is largely depicted in popular magazines and videos disregard the reality of the skate scene. While there are companies and magazines working to increase visibility, more recognition must be given to femme-identifying, queer, and non-white members of the community.
Although there is a need for structural changes through sponsorships, media, and financial support within the industry, there have been safer spaces emerging around the world to address this lack of representation and establish equal opportunities. Companies like The Skate Witches, Meow Skateboards, and Glue Skateboards, among others, have been founded out of this absence to improve representation without tokenizing skaters by simply fulfilling a quota. Instead, these groups aim to showcase skateboarding from a more realistic and inclusive perspective.
While these issues are universal, Montreal is lucky to have a more inclusive skate scene with individuals who are actively creating these spaces—especially for those who are new to skating, feel intimidated or unsafe at parks, or are looking for a community to share how special skateboarding is. These are some of the women who have greatly impacted my experience skateboarding in Montreal.
“I actually feel less comfortable skating on the street [than back home in Strasbourg]. I think because there’s such a big skate culture here there’s also the drawbacks of that [….] I’ve never heard anybody explicitly [say] ‘Oh that person is a poser’ or whatever but I feel a lot less comfortable cruising around here than I do back home. Whenever I’m just holding my board and not skating and walking, I get so anxious because I’m like ‘I know how to use it’ [….] It’s crazy because I have never once thought that [somebody is a poser] when I’ve seen someone carry a skateboard but for some reason, I feel like people would think that about me. That’s why I bike everywhere.”