MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:
OK, you don't need any special tech for this sport. Double Dutch, a daily activity of my childhood, is enjoying a comeback. I did not know it ever left. But reporter Leslie Eiler Thompson heads to Washington Square Park in New York City to learn the ropes.
(SOUNDBITE OF ROPES SNAPPING)
LESLIE EILER THOMPSON, BYLINE: Double Dutch is a way of jumping rope that uses two ropes instead of one, with two people turning the ropes on either end and a person jumping in the middle. It began as a child's game in urban neighborhoods and has been passed down for decades, primarily through the play of young Black girls. And double Dutch is finding a resurgence, especially through viral videos on social media of pop-up events in heavily populated city centers like this one.
SHAKIRA LEE: Stay right there. Don't go nowhere. Stay right there. Don't go nowhere. Stay right there. Don't go nowhere, don't go nowhere, don't go nowhere.
THOMPSON: That's Shakira Lee, and she's the coach for this pop-up event. She's been teaching double Dutch for five years.
LEE: I spent a lot of time in the Bronx. We have a big, big playground. And before we'd go to school, every time after breakfast, we'd run out into the playground and just play double Dutch.
There we go.
(CHEERING)
LEE: There we go. There we go. Spin around.
THOMPSON: Lee grew up in the foster care system, learned double Dutch from her foster siblings.
LEE: Back then, it was more so of a escape, coping mechanism. And it's grown into something much more bigger that I can't even describe. Like, it's the family. It's the joy.
She got that. She's a natural, she's a natural. Who's next? You next?
THOMPSON: So now Lee teaches the sport, whether through private lessons or pop-up events throughout New York City. And her favorite people to coach are those who have never done it before.
LEE: Give me 10 minutes. Ten minutes, that's all it takes.
THOMPSON: In fact, most of the people who jumped at this pop-up event were beginners, just like me when I had my own turn in the ropes.
LEE: One, two. One, two.
THOMPSON: (Screaming). Oh, my gosh.
LEE: Just like that. What did I say, in less than 10 minutes?
THOMPSON: Less than 10 minutes.
LEE: Let's get you back in the rope.
THOMPSON: And when any of us went long enough or spun around in the ropes, the crowd that had formed around us would cheer and celebrate, including coach Shakira Lee.
(CHEERING)
LEE: What I learn, I'm passing it down. I want to build generational memories. I want to build generational experiences. And every time there's a session, I look forward to it.
One, one, one, one.
(CHEERING)
LEE: One, two. One, two. One, two. One, two.
THOMPSON: For NPR News, I'm Leslie Eiler Thompson.
(SOUNDBITE OF KEYS N KRATES' "DOUBLE DUTCH") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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