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By Maya Henderson
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Photo by Stacie Freudenberg
While other schools chase skaters away from their steps and ramps, this school in
Humboldt Park lets them flip, jump and grind. |
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The first time I skated Clemente was about three years ago,” says Zack Caffarini,
21. “I had so much fun.”
Clemente isn’t one of the trendy new skateparks that have sprung up in recent
years throughout the Chicago area. It’s the grounds of Roberto Clemente
High School, a public school in Chicago’s beleaguered Humboldt Park neighborhood.
Kids skate in front of the school, where a metal bus stop bench stands in front
of two concrete benches, and in back, where there are three staircases with about
five steps each, which allow for nice-sized ollies, flips and jumps. But the main
attraction is the bigger, longer staircase with the wheelchair ramp that runs
along the side of the school, where there’s a long, smooth metal ledge that’s
perfect for grinding.
Skaters from all over the city — locals, out-of-towners, novices and pros
— flock to Clemente on nice days. Remarkably, they get along well. “Usually,
you go skate anywhere, there’s a beef, like some weird secret competition
among everyone there,” says Curt Cameruci, 21. “But here, it’s
cool. Everyone just does their thing.”
Zack Weedon, 22, agrees. He moved to Chicago less than a year ago and heard of
Clemente from other skaters. “It’s a place where I can see young and
old kids of all different walks of life,” he says. “There’s
no stereotyping at Clemente. Just skaters having a good time. I’m very thankful
the school lets us skate here.”
It’s unusual for a school to condone the use of its property for skateboarding.
These days, “No skateboarding” signs are posted outside many public
schools.
But it’s different here. Carmen Rodriquez, assistant principal of Roberto
Clemente, says the faculty and administration are willing to turn a blind eye
to the skaters as long as they don’t cause any trouble. “I see them
when I go out to the loading dock sometimes,” she says. “The school
has never had a problem with them and is not bothered by skaters at all.”
If anything, the skating seems to have nurtured a sense of community among the
participants. Many older skaters say they hang out with younger ones, giving them
props for landing big tricks, handing down old boards to them, and even giving
kids rides home if it’s dark outside.
“I try to influence them so they have good views of skateboarding and how
competition’s not really needed,” says Patrick Turner, 21. Caffarini
agrees. “At Clemente, you have fun, skate all day without being harassed,
and meet new people,” he says. “It’s not just skateboarding.
It’s bonding.” 
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