♪ dreamy hip-hop with filtered piano and strings ♪ Hi, my name is Joel Savary and I'm the founder of Diversify Ice Foundation.

I'm in Washington, D.C., here at the Sculpture Garden, and this is "If Cities Could Dance."

♪ dreamy hip-hop with filtered piano and strings ♪ Growing up, I used to just love watching the Olympics with my family.

But skaters of color, skating was one of those things that you simply just did not see.

♪ dreamy hip-hop with filtered piano and strings ♪ ♪ strong, determined hip-hop beat ♪ This is Chocolate City as they call it.

It's a perfect place to get people of color introduced to ice skating.

Being a Black boy was something that was not normal.

I knew from then I wanted to do something about it.

I ended up teaching my younger brother, Emmanuel Savary.

He ended up winning the Junior National Championship and a number of international competitions.

And then a lot more skaters of color started to come to me for lessons as well.

But when I went to some of the D.C. schools they said to me, Black kids don't ice skate.

♪ soft jazz funk with delicate melodies of piano and flute ♪ [Atoy] My discovery, my foundation, my beginnings originated with this Black skater, coach Mabel Fairbanks.

[Tai] Early 1967, my mom was searching for coaches and someone recommended Mabel.

If it weren't for her, we wouldn't be having this conversation.

[Atoy] She would watch the ice skaters in New York during the wintertime.

[Tai] She would do anything to get on the ice.

♪ traditional rhythm from Ghana ♪ [Atoy] So she wasn't a refined, typical figure skater.

A lot of her influence did come from dancers like Pearl Primus, Katherine Dunham.

Since she was denied many years in New York, not being able to compete competitively because of her color, she saw this opportunity to nurture, to inspire, and opened that door for minority skaters through me.

♪ traditional rhythm from Ghana ♪ I wasn't even allowed in a figure skating club.

She fought for me to get in those clubs.

[Tai] All of her children left to go to that higher level coach, but Mabel gave us everything she had.

She gave us blood, sweat, and tears to make it to that national level.

♪ traditional rhythm from Ghana ♪ ♪ lo-fi, chill urban hip-hop ♪ [Joel] What really made me dig deeper into that story was seeing my story in that story.

When I started to connect with Tai Babilonia, we talked heavily about Mabel, and I was just like, yes, like we have to keep her legacy alive.

I wanted to start the Diversify Ice Foundation to provide sponsorship, mentorship, networks, and opportunities for skaters of color, so that they're able to have all the resources that they need to be successful in figure skating.

[Zuri] My parents connected with Joel, and I was able to become a Diversify Ice Ambassador, and I was just really excited for that opportunity.

When I get on the ice, I feel really free.

♪ solo piano version of Chopin's waltz in Db major ♪ [Atoy] Looking back when I was skating, there was conformity in 1960.

There was a manner of how you dressed in relationship with the costume that you wore.

[Tai] Everything's pretty set.

It's the beautiful classical music, you know, the standards.

There wasn't much room for storytelling.

♪ solo piano version of Chopin's waltz in Db major ♪ [Atoy] There was a confinement and it was necessary.

'Cause can you imagine on top of not just, you know, trying to land your double axles and all that, that, oh I'm the Black kid.

When I get on that ice, I knew I was Atoy Wilson, Black skater.

♪ energetic, bouncy electro-pop ♪ Today, I may wanna skate to Beyoncé, or I may wanna skate and have a really original costume.

♪ energetic, bouncy electro-pop ♪ ♪ Everybody see me ♪ ♪ They all wanna be me ♪ ♪ Yeah, I get the key ♪ ♪ So, here we go ♪ ♪ 1, 2, 3 ♪ [Zuri] Starr Andrews inspires me.

I just think that it's really cool, the music that she skates to.

♪ Watch me ♪ ♪ All eyes on me, on me ♪ ♪ energetic, bouncy electro-pop ♪ [Joel] That process to tell a story, can just be formed a number of different ways.

There's a lot of influences, subtle and direct, that takes you there.

♪ energetic, bouncy electro-pop ♪ ♪ lo-fi hip-hop with dreamy keys and punchy beats ♪ [Joel] Diversify Ice, started out really small, just me kind of using my own hard work and money to like help kids get free lessons.

Many of those kids came over and said, "Skating is so expensive.

My parents can't afford the boots."

They're expensive.

Sometimes up to $2,000.

You have to pay to get onto the ice.

But when we get kids of color on the ice, they absolutely love it.

[Tai] Once again, this is Mabel's influence.

To teach about Mabel, that is my contribution, plant that seed.

♪ lo-fi hip-hop with dreamy keys and punchy beats ♪ [Zuri] I'm able to just see people that look like me and be with people that look like me.

[Tai] Figure skating is still predominantly white, especially at the national level.

It's changing.

It just seems like it's taking forever, but I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

We can't let up.

We have to stay on it and just keep pushing and fighting.

[Joel] Thanks for joining Diversify Ice in Washington, D.C. Don't foget to like and subscribe to KQED Arts channel.

See you later.

[Ice rink employee] Attention skaters, now it's time to clean the ice.

Please exit the ice rink for the Zamboni.

Please exit the ice rink for the Zamboni.

Thank you.

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