BKLYN Skates is a staple within the Brooklyn and NYC skate community! For many of us it is the the most easily accessible place to skate that provides a feeling of safe fun and community. We have just received news that BKLYN Skates will be shut down, and it is a devastating blow to the community of skaters that call it home. It has provided community, a form of therapy, exercise, and joy for many skaters of all ages and backgrounds.

Outside of BKLYN Skates many of us have a long and pricey commute to reach other rinks. We must travel to Long Island, Staten Island and New Jersey. This means the cost of skating increases for us as well as traveling home at late hours which increases safety risks. BKLYN Skates is easily accessible by public transportation and even on foot for so many of us in the neighborhood. Let's fight for our skate home!

Photo credit  - @crimsonrecluse_ on IG

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“Prior to the pandemic … you didn’t have a lot of places,” said Edward Jacobs, 58, a near lifelong skater who leads biweekly skate sessions for Brooklyn Skates, in a steamy Salvation Army gymnasium in the heart of Bedford-Stuyvesant. “Now, every day of the week, there's some place to skate.”

While Brooklyn Skates, previously called Crazy Legs, has hosted skate sessions in the same gym for more than a decade, it once catered to an older crowd. Now it has regulars of all ages, and many young skaters who just got into the sport since the pandemic’s start. On a recent evening, they glided and spun across the wooden floors, splashed in the rainbow light of a spinning disco ball hung from a basketball hoop.

“I really appreciate this rink,” said 25-year-old Isa Jamira, taking a momentary breather from the heat of the dance floor. “[It] isn’t too fast, you have the elders here, to essentially guide you.”

• Gwynne Hogan, The Gothamist