Where are the African / Asian chasers?

[Craig Maire II]

Search

I was pulled over on 06/01/01 by a state pooper (I mean trooper lol) for exceeding the speed limit slightly :lol: and the guy was less than "nice". He saw all the equippment in my car and asked me to open my bags, I did revealing my Asthma inhaler, immediately I was asked if I had a prescription for it, (I thought dude, you've got to be kidding me) I said yes and he rightfully left wrote me my ticket, gave me a quick speech and I was on my way. I believe what Jesal experienced when he was pulled over the 2nd time by a cop in Kansas was definitely racial profiling. Its very easy for a cop to say someone was swerving just so he/she could pull them over and snoop (gonna be kinda hard for the "suspect" to prove he wasn't swerving) unless you can somehow get ahold of the cops inside dash video. 1st he (the cop) tried to see if he could "get" Jesal for DUI and when that didnt work he asked to search the vehicle for drugs/weapons, I'm not trying to politicise this but come on, seems like the cop was definitely doing some fishing (from what Jesal wrote). I myself do not discriminate when chasing based on color, race, handicap, gender etc. as long as your not a "snob" etc. I'll chase with ya. Don't let your experience in Kansas stop you from chasing the plains/midwest Jesal, you'll be missing a whole lot of awsome storms if you do.Also, I have had many, many positive experiences when encountering members of the law enforcement community while chasing/spotting, don't want to seem biased against all police, most are awsome folks!(just a few irritated me) lol.

 

[Tim Vasquez]

Thanks everyone for keeping this thread courteous.

I had earlier considered retracting my post, as stereotyping becomes inevitable in any public thread about ethnicity and culture. It's also not a politically correct subject, as others have pointed out. I don't think that alone precludes a discussion on it (after all, we are a scientifically-minded group), but if the thread becomes a hot potato I'll go ahead and lock it.

Tim

 

[George Tincher]

Tim, a very interesting subject and something I've wondered about for a long time. I'm not sure I have the answer really.

I think to get the answer (or something approaching one), you might have to look farther than chasing itself.

Take NASCAR for example. It's basically an all white organization. Being the series is no longer restricted to the South and thus no longer a "redneck" sport, you'd think there would be a few black drivers. But evidently, African-Americans have little interest in auto racing. That goes for racing in general.

Now, think about sky diving. Pretty much 99% of sjydivers I've seen are white.

How many African-American bungee jumpers have you seen?

What about white water rafting?

I'm really not sure this is an answer, nor could I define what the cause is, but perhaps when it comes to thrill seeking and risky activities, maybe white people are more inherently attracted to such activities? I'm not suggesting that storm chasers are thrill seekers or dare devils exactly. But it's definately a high octane hobby.

In addition, maybe various ethnic groups have more or less interest in things of a scientific nature. I'm not sure what the breakdown would be, but if you could compare how many blacks, hispanics, whites, etc work in scientific related fields, I think you'd find that whites take greater interest.

So I really don't know. It's probably a combination of things. But for now, I believe it's mainly interest and geography, perhaps combined with some sort of inner drive variances among different ethnic groups. That's about all I can put my finger on.

-George

 

[Darren Addy]

I had earlier considered retracting my post. . .

I'm glad you didn't. I think most people tread cautiously, fearing that they might say something in the wrong way and cause offense. This isn't political correctness, it is called "courtesy".

I have to say, however, that when I saw your subject line I thought you were expanding Stormtrack to other continents (as with the recent China storms). I'm not sure if I were black and born in America I would refer to myself as "African" and the same probably goes for "Asian". Again, not political correctness, just correctness.

Darren Addy
Kearney, NE

 

[bvassmer]

I have chased a few times with a african-american named Justin. He is a undergrad in Met @ OU. He is undoubtly one of the smartest guys I have ever talked to. He is way ahead of most of the people in his class. As for chasing, he seemed to like it a lot when we went out.

As for anyone else I have chased with... yep.. all white.

 

[Ben Cotton]

I'm glad this thread was brought up. I'd like to respectfully disagree with the wishes to stop the discussion. Right now, this thread is merely observation and hypothesis -- two very scientific ideas. If it became a discussion of ways to make things more "equal" or how white people suck, etc, then I'd be all for stopping it.

As for my own views, this isn't something I've really considered. I grew up in a small town that was almost exclusively white...either poor farmers/laborers or very well-off execs worked in Louisville (KY). I am by no means a racist, but I just don't notice when there are few minorities because that's what I'm used to. Reading some of the other posts has given me pause for thought.

I don't believe it is entirely an economic phenomenon. After all, as someone mentioned earlier, it seems a lot of chasers are poor...and if not poor, certainly not rich. However, I'd bet a lot of the chasers who started in the last 10 years began in college (or because of "Twister"...but lets not go there) , so that could possibly reflect economic status. I'm more inclined, however, to think it is largely a matter of geography. The Ohio River valley gets its share of severe weather, and that's a big part of what got me hooked. It's no coincidence that many chasers grew up in severe weather-prone regions...regions that also happen to be rather WASPish.

Not to open a can of worms, but race is not the only method of identifying people, although it is the most visually obvious. I'd be interested to see how chasers breakdown by income/wealth, intelligence, political philosophy (ignoring the polls in "everything else"), religious beliefs, etc.


Ben

 

[Sarah Berling]

I'm more inclined, however, to think it is largely a matter of geography. The Ohio River valley gets its share of severe weather, and that's a big part of what got me hooked. It's no coincidence that many chasers grew up in severe weather-prone regions...regions that also happen to be rather WASPish.

I agree with Ben. Geography probably plays a huge role in meteorological interests. Places that have "boring" weather don't tend to spawn many chasers, whereas Tornado Alley spawns them by the dozen. So maybe the place to look would be the demography of the places that receive the most severe weather. You probably won't find many Latino chasers, for example, because many of them live in the Southwest, which isn't exactly known for its exciting weather. We might be trying to read too much into this whole thing. Perhaps it's all dependent on location.

Sarah

 

[joel ewing]

Well, here's the answer: All of us white chasers should agree to "reach out" to minorities.......and inform them that we invite them to chase tornadoes...that we give them our personal permission to do so. Oh yessssss.....we'll all feel really warm and fuzzy....because we did the right thing.
But let's not stop here. Because we have an overwhelming majority of whites that currently chase....or as others in this thread have put it...."waspy" and "mighty white out there" we'll need to penalize those white chasers in some form or another. Perhaps we can deny them access to the target zone live wx. forums in S.T. for a certain amount of time. Or better yet.....insist that they wear the electronic ankle bracelets that will keep them pinned within 50 miles of their homes on high risk days.
Now, I realize that these proposed penalties may seem somewhat severe. But...it's high time this chaser "community" realizes the problems that are festering within.....and we need to take action accordingly...before these racial imbalances reach a boiling point. And be advised....these edits are just one of the many benefits that can be enjoyed by all once we chasers agree to organize and unite. Ohhh, it'll be great. Rules and regs and political correctness that will rival the most stringent homeowner associations.

 

[Jeff Lawson]

Um, Joel? Relax.

Honestly, I've never given much thought to the subject - until now, that is. A general lack of minority chasers, I can understand, but for them to be practically non-existent does seem a bit strange. In the end, it's probably just a matter of Tornado Alley demographics.

And, admittedly, potential non-white chasers may look at the community and see it for the "white guys only" club it is (intentional or not, such is the reality), and thus feel less inclined to join in the fun. After all, consider how few women chase - even today. The situation may very well be analogous.

 

[Ben Cotton]

Joel. Calm down. Seriously. You're reading a lot more into this than anyone has said. We're all just making observations here. I haven't seen anyone say that its wrong that chasers are mostly white...only that its interesting. Let's not turn this into a flame war with a bunch of sarcasm. If you can't participate in calm, rational discussion, then don't.

I think sociologists are missing out on a big opportunity here. Studying storm chasers could teach us a lot about society. I think the same could be said for the other adrenaline-related hobbies mentioned: racing, bungee jumping, etc. Here's another question to ponder? What's the racial breakdown of chasers in other countries? I imagine there aren't nearly as many chasers in other parts of the world, but we have several countries represented here on ST. Knowing admittedly little about the racial composition of other countries, is the racial breakdown of chasers similar? Different? Not comparable due to the societal racial breakdown?


Ben

 

[Bill Hark]

I am enjoying this discussion. I think human behavior is quite interesting. Storm chasing is an unusual activity (and one that I have a special interest) therefore any examination of the sociology of chasing is especially fascinating.

Bill Hark
http://www.harkphoto.com

 

[George Tincher]

I really don't see what the big deal is either. The fact there are few minorities in chasing is fairly obvious. There's nothing wrong about wondering why that is. Nobody is saying there should or shouldn't be more diversity in chasing. It's just an interesting look at why it may or may not appeal to minorities.

 

[Robert Dewey]

I don't understand how "it's mighty white out there" implies anything racist. It's just pointing out the fact that there seems to be a lack of minority chasers. I have a few black friends, and asking them their opinion on it reveals no racism at all...

 

[joel ewing]

OK gents....I'll calm down! (Joel sits in lotus position and chants "ommmmmm ommmmmm.")
Please let me apologize if I got too carried away, and my posts sounded less than tongue in cheek. Truthfully, it's not so much this discussion that has me cranked up, it's the fact that I'm flying into Omaha this coming Wednesday to begin my annual 3 plus week chase season, and I'm worried about it being basically a dud. I've been on edge over this for some time. Can I get a witness??
This is an interesting discussion. And I've had discussions like this many, many times....and at length. Being raised in southeast Arizona...about an hour and a half north of the Mexican border in a cotton-farming environment... being white myself has made me the minority in some of the schools I've attended. My best friend on the entire planet since 1966(besides my bride, of course) is black. Notice I didn't say "African-American". Why?? Because I specifically asked him several years ago.."Mel...I remember riding around in the back of your Mom's old Nova Wagon in the late 60's and I was saying the word "negro" when talking about something with you, and your Mom so gently corrected me and said "sweetheart...(talking to me) we prefer the term "black" to negro, if you'd please") so what do you want me to call you.....Black...or A.American?" He thought for a second...then said....nahhhh....I'm a black guy. Incidently, Mel's a dentist, and his dad....who is about 80 now, started life as a shoe-shine boy in Oakland....and worked his way thru dental school and made a fortune thru dentistry and investments. Talk about overcoming hurdles!!
Well, this is getting too lengthy. Sorry for that. But I'll be glad to share my viewpoints in a less neurotic manner (I'm not kidding...it's this chase season doing it to me) from here on out. Thanks for listening.

 

[Dave Lewison]

I think George has hit on it...There just doesn't seem to be the interest in risky, thrill-seeking behavior among minorities. The geography and demography of places where severe weather occurs certainly could play a factor, but this wouldn't explain why other activities viewed to be "thrill-seeking" (those George mentioned like sky diving, bungee jumping, etc) have similar populations. Now don't infer that I'm saying chasing is for thrill-seekers. I'm not saying it is...but you have to admit, it's far from your average hobby. As someone else said, it's a high-octane hobby.

I don't think it's that minorities aren't interested in the sciences...far from it. I'm an engineer, and I'd say fully 2/3 of my graduating class was non-white (and the population of women in engineering is going up fast as well...great for me :wink: ). I think it's more of a lifestyle thing. Maybe it's just that white people have more of a tendency to be interested in potentially harmful activities...doesn't say much for the gene pool huh?

BTW, Ted Fujita obviously wasn't white. Does anyone know if he did any storm chasing during his research?