A lot of people have taken up roller-skating to pass the time during quarantine. Although some thank TikTok for its comeback, many believe that the platform discredits the constant influence that the African-American community has on roller-skating. 

“The whitewashing of skating’s online resurgence can in part be traced to racial biases embedded in social media algorithms used by platforms like TikTok,” Jess Joho, author of The whitewashing of roller skating’s online revival, said. Although the hobby has saturated many “For You” pages these past few months, Joho believes that TikTok is purposely suppressing African-American skaters in its algorithm in favor is white, cisgender women. Because this social networking service is no stranger to anti-black disposition, the claim came as no surprise. 

“The African-American community often gets overlooked in so many ways: music, politics, science, literature… [however, for me] it was normal to walk outside my house [in South Central] and see groups of African-American skaters,” Ms. Flores, an English teacher and former roller skater, said. She believes it’s important to acknowledge the impact that people of color have on positive activities such as these. Although Flores wasn’t aware that these skaters were not being acknowledged on certain social media platforms, she does admire the African-American community for their contributions to roller-skating. 

“My awareness and appreciation have greatly grown [for] the community, but also has made me think about what other things that African-Americans have done that the community does not get credit for,” Luisa Alvarez, a senior and roller-skating newbie, said. In addition to believing that TikTok is a biased platform, Alvarez also thinks it is necessary to give credit where it’s due. She believes that it is important to spread awareness about the African-American community in order to prevent stereotyping and further whitewashing of this hobby.