Wade in the Water Screening + Bay Area Surf Meet and Greet

Join us for a special screening of the acclaimed documentary Wade in the Water: A Journey into Black Surfing and Aquatic Culture (2023) and learn about the work of several Bay Area organizations focused on expanding access to surfing. Directed by David Mesfin, Wade in the Water reclaims the 1,000-year-old tradition of Black surfing. Braiding historical accounts with modern-day testimonials, the film dismantles the racial barriers of conventional surf culture, delves into the overlooked history of Black surfing’s legacy, and honors its current movement — inspiring the next generation of Black surfers. The screening will be followed by a conversation between Mesfin, founders of Black Surfers Collective Gregory and Marie Rachal, founder and Executive Director of Black Surf Santa Cruz Esabella Bonner, and founder of Black.Surfers Kayiita Johansson, plus a special preview of a new project and partners.

The screening of Wade in the Water will be preceded by a screening of the short film Gender Outlaw, a bodysurfing story, which is the first documentary from Cross Step Content and profiles transgender athlete Tyler Wilde.

Step into the Koret Education center between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. to connect with local surfing organizations that are committed to inclusivity within the surfing community and see a selection of photography by David Mesfin.

Event Schedule

Bay Area Surf Meet and Greet
11 a.m.–4 p.m.
Floor 2, Koret Education Center

Learn more about a selection of local surfing organizations whose work is committed to expanding access to and representation in surfing. Organizations include:
Black.Surfers
Black Surfers Collective
Blacksurfing
Black Surf Santa Cruz
City Surf Project
Mando Surf Company
MeWater Foundation
Queer Surf
Salted Roots
Surfrider San Francisco
Tyler Wilde of Gender Outlaw
Withitgirl
 
Wade in the Water: A Journey into Black Surfing and Aquatic Culture screening and conversation
1 p.m.
Floor 1, Phyllis Wattis Theater

About the Participants

Born in Ethiopia, David Mesfin migrated to the United States at an early age. Growing up in St. Augustine, Florida, he was immersed in a vibrant local surf culture that conceived his passion for the ocean and nature. After moving to the West Coast to receive his Bachelor of Arts in Visual Communication and Advertising from California State University, Long Beach, David connected with a community of Black surfers that introduced him to the historical context of surfing in Africa. These formative experiences, which connect his lifelong passion and ancestral roots, spawned the creative inspiration and community-based collaborations that have bloomed into Wade in the Water.

Esabella Bonner is an entrepreneur, visionary, and award-winning changemaker/activist working to help bridge the Santa Cruz community. In 2020, Bella followed her gut and organized the largest-ever social protest gathering that Santa Cruz County had ever seen with over 5,000 people in attendance. While this was the first protest she organized, it was a great success and opened up a world of movement work to her. She then organized the community to make space for Black and Brown people at various paddle-outs as a part of protests on the water in Santa Cruz to support Black Lives Matter. This led Bella to creating Black Surf Santa Cruz, where she is the founder and executive director for the award-winning organization which aims to promote physical, spiritual, and communal wellness and healing through surfing, recreation, education, and advocacy for our local community.

Kayiita Johansson is a product management and marketing leader at the crossroads of hardware, software, and AI, and is the founder of Black.Surfers, an organization dedicated to attaining equitable access to surfing for Black people through policy and community. Surfing entered his life in 2014, a natural extension of his childhood passion for skateboarding, swimming, and body surfing. That connection to the ocean, and the dearth of Black surfers around him when he moved to the Bay, inspired him to found Black.Surfers. Johansson’s career in technology has taken him to Dallas and New York City before making his way to the San Francisco Bay Area in 2016 for business school at Stanford. He currently lives in Oakland.

The Black Surfers Collective, co-founded and led by Gregory Rachal, along with his wife, Executive Director Marie Rachal, and a dedicated team of volunteers, is committed to introducing underrepresented communities to the sport of surfing while fostering ocean conservation and environmental stewardship. They offer free surf lessons, community events, and educational programs that promote a deeper connection to the ocean and the importance of protecting our natural environment.