Apparently, Skiing Needs More Alphabet People…

I gotta say… this is the most fun I’ve had reading an article in a while. I usually go for the more depressing, “your government obviously cares nothing about you or your wellbeing” kind of content, so this was a nice switch-up.

Maybe my sense of humor’s just broken, but I probably found this more entertaining than I should have. Irony is definitely high on my list of comedic preferences…

From The College Fix:

An adjunct professor at the University of British Columbia apparently has the ability to detect who is gay, lesbian, trans, etc. at North American ski resorts.

Writing in BIVnews.com, Elisabeth Cooke says the skiing and snowboard communities are losing out on economic opportunity by not diversifying.

“As a lesbian in North Vancouver I have spent most of my life with the mountains as my backyard,” Cooke (pictured) writes. “I feel very comfortable at ski resorts and have had the privilege of skiing all over the country. But if I pause and look around, I don’t see a lot of diversity or other LGBTQ+ folks, at least not regularly.”

You may be familiar with the word “gaydar,” a term used facetiously for someone who can spot homosexuals. It seems Cooke actually has it. For how else could she know that skiers around her are gay? Are they wearing a rainbow-colored ski vests? Or something else (pictured)?

These questions notwithstanding, Cooke says ski resorts at least can be much more open about their LGBTQ+ “allyship.” They could, for example, mimic the 30-year-old Whistler’s Pride and Ski Festival, “definitely one of the world’s largest queer-focused ski weekends.”

The National Ski Areas Association (NSAA) reported on the U.S. Downhill Snowsports Demographics for 2021/22. They show that nearly 90% of skiers in the US are white. It’s likely the data is similar in Canada.

Unsurprisingly, Cooke is the co-founder and CEO of an “inclusive employee engagement platform” called Dignii. According to her site bio, she is “a trusted advisor to government, organizations and associations, and industry,” as well as the founder of the (seemingly moribund) organization Inclusivity.

At UBC, Cooke teaches employment law at the Saunder School of Business.

First of all… don’t our societal rules state that it’s rude to assume someone’s sexual preferences based on their physical appearance?

Second of all… I’m pretty sure she’s missed the elephant in the room, here. Is skiing exclusionary to the gays? Or is it exclusionary to poor people? I’d be willing to bet money on the latter… So, Elisabeth’s basically outed herself as an elitist, seeing as she’s been a lifelong, willing participant.

I, for one, have never been skiing. I am also low on funds. Whether that’s correlational or causational… I’ll leave that to you.

Finally… I would never trust the opinion of anyone who is a “trusted advisor” to the government. That pretty much tells you everything you need to know…

She’s also Canadian, so…