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1 Rodney Mullen legitimised skating among college academics and so was a key player in the deconstruction of 'rebel skateboarding'
2 Sky Brown seeded a skate future with more female participants
Can you explain this please?
maybe he just wanted to practise his pubic speaking, but whatever, it would have been hard work for him and it raised the profile of skaters at a time before the present pubic mind set, he never promoted his product so seemed altruistic to me
however, it could be construed that he tried to control the narrative and paint himself as the godfather of street skating and increase his personal mana
so yea I could be wrong, my bad, thanks for questioning my post and exposing any hidden agenda that may be encrypted here
but also it could be said that many of the other skaters charitable actions could also have a personal agenda hidden like tax advantages for foundations
I get where you are coming from and I didn't realize he had that many TED/TEDx talks. However, I feel Rodney kind of pushes pseudo-science when it comes to his pop-psychology talks.
I'd argue the two people who deserve the most credit for making skateboarding something academics are allowed to study are Ian Borden and Becky Beal (and then Ocean Howell). The two are totally different in their approach, but they both just get it. Borden's new book is pretty cool. (Also, I'm going to argue Snyder's academic skate book is the absolute worst. It is a misinformed love letter to Aaron Snyder and Street League.)
I'm just a kid in skate years so all this is new to me, but I did just google a bit and found a college panel discussion with these guys you mention. Mullens Ted intellectualism wore pretty thin on me too, its the same tiny amount of content repackaged. He should have only done one or two.
Every week I attend a few evening lectures at Auckland University, but am starting to question the futility of corporate academia, when a brave new world in waiting is being held back from us due to financial interests, that generally are more interested in dumbing down.
If anything I think skateboarding is wagging the 'community dog' from the grounded solidness of its anarchistic imperative. Like trying to herd cats, corporate pressure on skateboarding to conform is seeing itself in the mirror. An aging and authoritarian disciplinarian, impotently trying to train the feline.
And regarding skaters giving back to the community, it may be the street wisdom of the punk slacker at the back of the class who never does homework and has poor grades, yet is smart and has potential written all over him, that may be skating's greatest gift to the community. Keeping mainstream bullshit real. Like a cell growth modulator in the body of man.
Todays skaters, rebellious youth and other neuro-outsiders like aspies and adhders, are destined to remain the community amusers, musicians, jesters, comedians, tumblers and street acrobats of our time. Probably as they have always been. A muse for the masses.
A band of misfits 'wanting to belong on their own terms', to quote one of Mullens Ted talks...
Topic: Which skaters give back to the community? (Read 2588 times)