Skate Like a Girl at Pacifica Skatepark

With a small crew of ten girls in tow, Erica Harris, San Francisco programming co-director of Skate Like a Girl, glides into .

She and her cohorts are there for a "skate date". Skate dates are where members “plan a location and meet up and skate.”

Skate Like a Girl is a non-profit, grassroots organization focused on the goal of “providing an innovative approach to female empowerment and leadership” by way of skateboard-related programs. 

It all began in Olympia, WA in 2000 and then relocated to Seattle, which has become homebase. Skate Like a Girl has since expanded and branched out into new chapters in Portland, Ore. in Oct. 2007. With the leadership of Harris, the San Francisco chapter was established in Aug. 2008.

Having worked for the U.S. Forest Service as a wildland firefighter, Harris found the conditions too remote and isolated and getting to a skate park was always a trek. She wanted a job that wouldn’t require as much traveling or time away from home for weeks at a time. Harris was ready for a change.

After moving to San Francisco, she began working in landscaping but now works for worker-owned, cooperative Arizmendi bakery, which is a spin off of The Cheese Board Collective, a Berkeley institution since 1967.

Harris tells us she likes the schedule because they work early in the morning or late in the evening. Since they work most weekends, it means she can visit the skateparks during the weekday and compares it to surfing, a favorite Pacifica pastime, where you want to be in the water when it’s not as crowded. 

The aspect of the bakery that she likes best is the social justice – “we’re all equal and making the same wage. It’s a way to get involved with the community and it’s an alternative capitalism.” 

Working with a very diverse crew, they empower everyone to be an owner. 

“I see a lot of similarities in this job and Skate Like a Girl, which creates a lot of opportunities," she said. "For me, those two things are closely tied together –-the vision of it -- because ultimately, what we are is a girls’ empowerment organization and we create opportunities for people to become leaders in their community. We allow those same things in my workplace that not a lot of other work places have.”

Skate Like a Girl is an inclusive and diverse organization. If the members have friends that skate and mentors that they can identify with, it is going to be more fun. Then they would be more likely to stick with it. They might also meet other people that are positive, including boys or men, that are really great skaters and that will make them want to keep coming.

“We just try to focus on creating a safe environment and get them stoked on skating and hopefully, they can carry that on,” Harris said.  

In addition to weekly drop-in clinics, Harris is now looking to offer summer and weekend sessions that are free and accessible to everyone. This will require some support. Skate Like a Girl has received skateboard and helmet donations but are still in need of elbow and knee pads for new learners so that they don’t have to worry about hurting themselves.

There is some fundraising that takes place but “it can be difficult to squeeze that in since everyone who coordinates and works with Skate Like a Girl is a volunteer," Harris said.  

Funding supports skate camps and transportation costs to events because some of the skaters may not have the means to pay for it themselves. It also supports publicity materials such as stickers and flyers, as well as, production and distribution of their Escape Route Zine, a DIY cut and paste community driven zine featuring all female skateboarders. 

To find out more about Skate Like a Girl, you can visit their website or their Facebook pages. Their main page has over 12,000 likes on Facebook and their San Francisco page has over 300 likes.

Check out the video of their latest Skate Date here in Pacifica Skatepark.

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