COMMUNITY PROFILE BIPOC ROLLER DERBY: MEMBERS OF COLORADO SHINERS SEEK TO INFLUENCE CONVERSATION ABOUT EQUALITY BY GILES CLASEN THERE WAS A LOT OF EXCITEMENT when registration for the 2023 BIPOC Bowl roller derby tournament was announced. The BIPOC Bowl, which takes place April 15 and 16, is a Denver-based roller derby tournament exclusively for skaters of color to join together and compete against one another. Demand to participate was so high, it was a scramble for skaters from all around the world to snag a highly coveted roster spot. While other roller derby tournaments experienced a slow restart following the pandemic, the BIPOC Bowl, which is in its second year, filled all its skating spots in less than eight hours. “There’s nothing else like it,” said BIPOC Bowl founder, Samantha Mack, who goes by her derby name Jams Bond, or, just Jams. “There is not another opportunity on the planet where people of color can skate with other people of color like this.” Like wrestling names, derby names are both theatrical and revealing about a player. Some names focus on a player’s skating style, others evoke personality traits. All are designed to highlight the individual in a team sport. The BIPOC Bowl grew out of Jams’ other BIPOC-specific derby venture, the Colorado Shiners, which Abena WatsonSiriboe helped found. Watson-Siriboe uses the derby name Norah P Neffrin, which is generally shortened to Norm. CREATING A SAFE HAVEN Norm and Jams are both trainers with the Colorado Shiners, a team that is dedicated to introducing the Denver BIPOC community to roller derby and eliminating barriers to participation. BIPOC is an inclusive designation meaning Black Indigenous and People of Color intentionally avoiding victim-centered language like “marginalized,” or “minority.” “Roller derby is a very white sport,” Norm said. “Throughout my 13 years, I’ve run into other skaters of color, and we kikied whenever we saw each other because we realized just how rare that was.” JAMS BOND PERFORMS AN APEX JUMP AT ROLLERCON IN JULY 2022. CREDIT: GILES CLASEN 6 DENVER VOICE April 2023
7 Publizr Home