Spacious Skies Campgrounds (SSC) has become the first private campground company to partner with Black Folks Camp Too (BFCT), an organization that promotes the outdoor lifestyle to campers of all experiences and backgrounds. All of the 14 Spacious Skies campgrounds are now “Unity Blaze Certified,” which acknowledges the campgrounds’ commitment to the Unity Blaze motto: “Treat Everyone, Everywhere, Equally.” “Our mission is to offer campers fun, relaxing and authentic campground experiences no matter your race, age or gender,” said Ali Rasmussen, co-founder of Spacious Skies Campgrounds. “Partnering with Black Folks Camp Too is a natural extension of our ongoing efforts to ensure that all of our guests feel comfortable and welcome camping with us while they explore the abundant recreational offerings in each location.” The partnership with Black Folks Camp Too is the latest example of how Spacious Skies Campgrounds is paving new ground in campground management. In just two years, the company has grown to 14 campgrounds, established a loyalty program, developed a Fall Color Trail and Spring Bloom Trail to celebrate the seasonal beauty in each location, promoted staff unity through teambuilding retreats and other initiatives, created themed weekends to highlight seasonal and local/regional events and offerings, partnered with RVShare for on-site rentals to encourage new-to-camping travelers to try out the RV lifestyle, launched infrastructure enhancements at new campgrounds and much more. “Becoming the first Unity Blaze Certified private campground company is an achievement that we are celebrating company-wide,” said Rasmussen. “Black Folks Camp Too is making considerable headway in promoting unity in outdoor hospitality and recreation, and as a new partner we pledge to support their groundbreaking efforts in every campground we own and operate.” For more information, visit www.spaciousskiescampgrounds.com.

Broward County is home to a rich, vibrant tapestry of cultures, with people from more than 170 countries, speaking 147 languages living there. This dynamic array of diversity is not only prevalent in every corridor of the county — it’s proudly celebrated in the attractions, festivals, and food the destination has to offer. That’s why Visit Lauderdale has curated a list of the sights, sounds, and savory spots to experience during National Diversity Month.

After the wave of recent layoffs affecting several major corporations, Casa Velas in Puerto Vallarta is offering a new getaway with free career counseling workshops from leading life coach Ruth Beltran.Travelers can take a break before getting into the serious business of searching for a new job, clear one’s head, and get advice on what to do next. The retreat, complimentary to hotel guests, includes a daily program devoted to transformational thinking to put guests in charge of their career today, along with an overview of changes taking place in the work world. Under the guidance of Beltran, guests will look at the new realities and how to stay in charge of their work life, whether that means identifying a new career, repositioning in a current field, or improving the job search. Casa Velas’ Career Getaway will take place April 24-28, 2023. For more information, visit https://www.hotelcasavelas.com/packages/career-getaway.

Visit Jacksonville is Florida’s first destination management organization to earn the Certified Autism Center™ (CAC) designation. This designation, granted by the International Board of Credentialing and Continuing Education Standards (IBCCES), recognizes organizations that have undergone staff training to better understand and meet the needs of autistic visitors and their families. Visit Jacksonville president and CEO Michael Corrigan welcomed the designation, saying, “We’re proud to be the first destination marketing organization in the state of Florida to achieve the Certified Autism Center™ status, but we’re most proud to create a more welcoming and inclusive environment for all who visit Jacksonville.” Visit Jacksonville operates three Visitor Centers: Jacksonville International Airport, Downtown Jacksonville at 100 North Laura Street, and the Beaches Museum in Jacksonville Beach, and also deploys a mobile Visitor Center that travels to various events state-wide. Many autistic individuals and their families want to travel yet may worry they will not be understood, welcomed, or have access to accommodation needs. A recent survey of parents, families, and autistic individuals conducted by IBCCES discovered that 94% of respondents would take more vacations or visit more new places if they had access to autism-trained and certified options. Through community designation as a CAD, a selection of the city’s attractions, hotels, recreation, and entertainment organizations will complete autism and sensory training and certification, as well as onsite reviews, and have long-term access to other supports through IBCCES. For a closer look at all there is to see and do in Jacksonville, go to http://www.VisitJacksonville.com.

Alexandria, VA— From a self-taught mathematician who mapped out the nation’s capital to abolitionist sisters who partnered with Frederick Douglass to the first Black athlete to play in the NBA, African American changemakers have shaped the history of Alexandria, VA, and the United States. Throughout Black History Month, participate in a range of activities including a Manumission Tour Company Black History bus tour and film screenings of African American cinematic classics, explore the just-launched southern route of the African American Waterfront Heritage Trail and attend additional events below. Plus, look for the reopening of the Alexandria Black History Museum in 2023. Explore more ways to celebrate Black history and culture throughout February and year-round on Visit Alexandria’s Black History and Culture landing page.

Multicultural Travel News – News from New-York Historical Society, MMGY, Boston, Expedia, New York and Ft. Lauderdale

News Briefs:
New-York Historical Society Showcases Black Is Beautiful: The Photography of Kwame Brathwaite
The Biggest Barriers for Travelers With Disabilities (MMGY Global Report)
Boston All Inclusive campaign encourages residents and visitors alike to see Boston as diverse
Expedia Debuts First Ad for New Campaign Focusing on U.S. Latino Travelers
NYC & Company Launches Arabic-language Guide to Halal Travel in New York City During Middle East Sales Mission
Visit Lauderdale Unveils New Brand Campaign “Everyone Under the Sun”
Black Pioneers: Legacy in the American West

Multicultural Travel News – News from Washington, D.C., New York, Albuquerque, Wisconsin, Tennessee, California and the Rockies

News Briefs:
NMAI | National Museum of the American Indian: Visit the Many Nations of America From Home, Washington, D.C., and New York
Great Ways to Honor Native American Heritage Month – Albuquerque
Great Ways to Honor Native American Heritage Month – Wisconsin
Great Ways to Honor Native American Heritage Month – Tennessee
Visit Native California Platform will Inspire Travelers to Discover Wonders of Golden State’s Native Lands and Cultural Heritage Experiences
The YMCA of the Rockies Is Working to Diversify the Outdoors

MMGY Global released its latest report on the travel industry, called Portrait of Travelers with Disabilities: Mobility and Accessibility, reporting that the top two barriers for travelers with disabilities remain, as ever, accommodations and transportation. The report aims to showcase to the travel industry the needs of millions of individuals across the globe who find that their mobility impairments can also impair their ability to travel. The numbers are indicative of the truth: 96 percent of all respondents have faced a problem with accessible accommodations while traveling; 86 percent have faced difficulties with air travel, and 79 percent have also experienced transportation problems while in their destination. These are startlingly high percentages, considering travelers with mobility impairments spend about $58.2 billion annually on travel and consistently take about the same number of trips annually as an able-bodied individual. The research found that 54 percent of respondents had been given a room upon check-in to their accommodation that didn’t match the room they booked, which can cause accessibility issues to occur. The research found that 81 percent of travelers who were surveyed struggled with inaccessible showers or tubs. Fifty-two percent have also experienced having beds that were too high for them to easily access. Transportation issues continue to occur among travelers with mobility issues, too. Six in ten respondents have experienced extended wait times at the airport before or after their flight waiting for mobility assistance, while forty percent have had their mobility aid lost or damaged during air travel. The report also asked travelers what could benefit them in the future. Over eighty percent of respondents all agreed on three key things: increased promotion of accessible accommodations increased maintenance of ramps, sidewalks and mobile lifts and increased accessibility information on a destination’s website. The report surveyed 2,375 adults with disabilities who utilize mobility aids, as well as 414 caregivers or companions of someone with a mobility impairment. 1,761 had traveled in the past twelve months. MMGY Global worked with a committee of disability advocates, senior business leaders of travel companies who serve and support disabled travelers, destination marketing organizations and more. MMGY Global will be donating all proceeds from sales of the report to the United Spinal Association, a nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering people with spinal cord injuries and disorders (SCI/D), including veterans, to live successful and fulfilling lives.

Beginning August 19, 2022, the New-York Historical Society is the exclusive New York City venue for the traveling exhibition Black Is Beautiful: The Photography of Kwame Brathwaite, the first major show dedicated to this pivotal figure who helped launch and popularize the “Black Is Beautiful” movement of the 1960s. On view through January 15, 2023, the exhibition features 40 large-scale color and black-and-white photographs that document how Brathwaite helped change America’s political and cultural landscape during the so-called Second Harlem Renaissance, using his art to affirm Black physical beauty, celebrate African American community and identity, and reflect the vibrancy of Harlem’s jazz scene, local businesses, and events. “We are thrilled to bring this exhibition to New York City, Kwame Brathwaite’s hometown and the location of many of his most powerful images,” said Dr. Louise Mirrer, president and CEO of New-York Historical. “His work is a testament to the power of a visual medium to impact the movement towards racial equity. We hope Kwame Brathwaite’s photographs inspire a deeper understanding of the Black empowerment movement and how its legacy resonates today.” The exhibition chronicles Brathwaite’s evolution as an activist and artist. Born in Brooklyn in 1938, and raised in the Bronx, Brathwaite was still a teenager when he saw the horrific photographs of Emmett Till in his open casket published in Jet magazine in 1955. For Brathwaite, as for so many people, the impact of those photographs was decisive. As the son of a Caribbean American family, Brathwaite was also greatly influenced by the ongoing Pan-Africanist legacy of the Jamaican-born activist Marcus Garvey. With his brother Elombe, Brathwaite founded the African Jazz-Art Society & Studios (AJASS) and organized concerts featuring jazz luminaries such as Miles Davis, Abbey Lincoln, and Max Roach. In addition to promoting musical events, the group advanced a message of economic empowerment and political consciousness in the Harlem community, emphasizing the power of self-presentation and style. “Think Black, Buy Black” became a rallying cry. In the 1960s, Brathwaite and his collective also sought to address how white conceptions of beauty and body image affected Black women and culture. To do so they popularized the transformative idea “Black Is Beautiful” and founded Grandassa Models, a group of Black women of varying backgrounds from the community who embraced natural hairstyles and their African ancestry. The modeling troupe sought to counter both the slight, androgynous figure made famous by 1960s British supermodels Jean Shrimpton and Twiggy and the ubiquity of lighter-complexioned, straight-haired Black models in Black-owned publications such as Ebony. Alongside striking photographs of Grandassa models, the exhibition features several dresses and pieces of jewelry worn by the women. Special to New-York Historical’s display of the exhibition is a new audio guide available on the Bloomberg Connects app. The audio provides context about the “Black Is Beautiful” movement, the African Jazz-Art Society & Studios, and the Grandassa Models. The audio guide also explores other topics explored in the exhibition including jazz, Black activism, natural beauty, fashion, and Harlem during the time period depicted in Brathwaite’s photographs. Organized by Aperture in partnership with Kwame S. Brathwaite, Brathwaite’s son and director of the Kwame Brathwaite Archive, the photographs—mostly shot in Harlem and the Bronx—tell a story of a movement and a time. Following its presentation at New-York Historical, the exhibition travels to the University of Alabama at Birmingham for the Abroms-Engel Institute for the Visual Arts in February 2023. The exhibition is accompanied by the first monograph dedicated to Kwame Brathwaite. Featuring essays by Tanisha C. Ford and Deborah Willis and more than 80 images, Kwame Brathwaite: Black Is Beautiful (Aperture, 2019) offers a long-overdue exploration of Brathwaite’s life and work and is available from the NYHistory Store. For more info, visit nyhistory.org.