Meet the skate mums fighting to save their concrete jungle
A group of skate moms with a large online following meet monthly at London's Southbank Centre, the spiritual home of British skateboarding. The video profiles one member, 52-year-old Nesha, who describes skateboarding as therapy. The segment also explores the skate community's 50-year history of resisting gentrification and fighting to preserve their iconic concrete space.
Summary
The video introduces a community of skate moms who have built a significant online following and gather in person once a month, children welcome. The segment profiles Nesha, a 52-year-old mother of two, who shares how her children were initially embarrassed by her skateboarding but have since come around, with her daughter even picking up the sport again. Nesha describes skateboarding as her primary form of therapy, a place she goes to reset when feeling overwhelmed or stressed, and ranks it among the best things she has ever done in her life.
The skate moms are participating in an exhibition at London's Southbank Centre, which marks the 50th anniversary of the venue's undercroft skate space — considered the spiritual home of British skateboarding. The exhibition traces the culture back to the 1970s punk scene, when skaters were seen as underground rebels. Over the decades, the skate community has actively fought off developers and the forces of gentrification to preserve this community space. The segment frames the skaters' resilience as emblematic of a broader struggle to protect community spaces that are not valued by commercial interests, with skateboarding described as an act of reclaiming space.
Key Insights
- Nesha states that skateboarding functions as therapy for her — the skate park is the specific place she goes to reset when feeling overwhelmed or stressed.
- Nesha ranks skateboarding at the very top of the best things she has done in her life, placing it above even her role as a parent, joking 'Sorry, kids.'
- The speaker argues that community spaces like the Southbank undercroft are not valued in the same way as commercial developments, making them constantly vulnerable to gentrification and capitalism.
- The Southbank skate community is credited with having fought off developers over multiple decades to preserve what is described as the spiritual home of British skateboarding.
- Nesha reveals that her children initially found it embarrassing to be at the skate park with her, but have since changed their view, with her daughter resuming skateboarding herself.
Topics
Transcript
[0:00] Meet the skate moms. With thousands of followers online, [music] they meet up in real life once a month. Offspring welcome. And much like life, when you fall down, it's all about picking yourself up again. Nesha's 52 and has two kids. What do your kids think about their mom being a skate mom? >> My children um actually stopped going to the skate park. >> [laughter] >> They think that they didn't think it was cool, but now they actually do secretly think it's cool. My daughter has started skateboarding again. [0:30] Um and you know, it's just really lovely to share that space and that joy with her. For me, skateboarding is therapy. When I feel overwhelmed,…
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