Going to Harold Pener's

When I was a newer swing dancer dancing in Overland Park, KS, Randy, a scene regular, told me I needed to go to the pimp store for new dance duds. As he or another male dancer told me (memory fades after 20+ years), every swing dancer needed a pimp store. It’s where you get your zoot suit, flashy ties, snazzy suspenders and sweet shoes.

And Harold Pener’s was the go-to spot in Kansas City for the white jitterbuggers hopping on the neo-swing craze. Harold Pener’s was also the go-to destination for Black men wanting to look their best for church, Kansas City Two-Step parties and other functions important in their lives. So not only was I engaging in appropriating a Black dance form, Lindy Hop, I was costuming myself in Black culture’s clothing while engaging in derogatory terms for fashionable Black men.

It’s interesting when the present (see above) can elicit memories that cause you to analyze your previous choices. Some of the reasons for my choices then was peer pressure, desiring to fit in and having a lack of curiosity so I cosplayed Blackness. In reality, I was participating in something that was meant to be punk that became “small c conservative” according to this podcast hosted by Slate.

And you see the conservatism play out when swing school organizers choose teaching east coast swing, jitterbug or swing because, as they explain, that’s what the audience is most familiar with and it’s more inclusive this way. Dr. Thomas DeFrantz said it a talk for CVFC '- “Dance is technology transforming dehumanization into joy but Black people can’t hold the patent.” It’s about time swing dance school organizers honor Black culture rather than stripping cultural meaning from their creations.

Paving The Way

I started a book recently called Dying of Whiteness that encouraged further reflection on how some people make things harder on subsequent generations rather than easier. In the dance world which encompasses teaching, learning, dancing and socializing, this materializes in different forms such as:

• the instructor teaching methods deemed out-dated or not aligned with Lindy Hop (groove walks anyone?)

• organizers not updating their Code of Conducts or having any because they never had this when they started dancing

• people not talking openly online or in-person about our social dances originating from Black communities because they think this would exclude or alienate white audiences instead of attracting the world majority

While it can be tough looking at newer generations of dancers or future ones while looking back at your experiences (learning from VHS tapes, reconciling your background appropriating Black dances, seeing that your peers were competing at ALHC while you were muddling in KC), it should be celebrated that you can make someone’s learning journey easier by bringing your meandering messy learning path but fixing the potholes, building bridges to avoid pitfalls and paving the way.

Allowing Students Space To Find The Dance

One thing I've learned over the years, and this could be why I gravitate toward or value particular teachers, is to provide space for students to find the dance. From Peter Strom - "Many people come absolutely bereft saying 'please tell me what to do.'" And this is a fine place to be. After all, students are coming to learn, start a new hobby, join a community.

It's the teachers' job to teach culture, movement vocabulary, music appreciation and more, and then step aside. This could take the form of playing whole songs for the students to dance to, providing time for students to workshop ideas, or teach patterns that encourage call-and-response from students.

And then provide encourage, shout praise, give a thumbs up, make eye contact and nod "I see you," bring students up to demo what they've accomplished and/or created, or even dance demo what you saw from students as a way of encouraging greater exploration and then quickly turn the music back on.

As I state in the teacher trainings I lead - Lindy Hop is dynamic, full of choices, and ambiguous at times. You just have to believe your students are capable and project that belief to them, so they can believe it to and become independent dancers dancing as themselves.