40+ Double Dutch Club

Double Dutch is making a comeback, and the game is not just for young girls anymore. For the Jackson chapter of the 40+ Double Dutch Club, jumping rope is not only a form of entertainment or workout; it is also a tool for empowerment, community-building, and sisterhood. With dozens of members, this club brings the noise, movement, and joy of skipping rope to women all over Jackson.

Double Dutch—also known as jump rope—is one of the oldest forms of athletic play. Historians date the practice to at least 1600 BCE, when Egyptians used vines for jumping. In the United States, jump rope has been popular since colonial times; it is believed to have arrived in New York City with Dutch immigrants. In the mid-20th century, jump rope experienced a surge of popularity as the sensational Double Dutch (two-rope) style was revived by urban youth. Double Dutch became a thriving tradition on the playground, and ultimately a symbol of Black girlhood. Rhymes and jumping patterns were passed from child to child informally over generations, always incorporating new elements that speak to the current moment.

Looking for an escape from the usual challenges of adulthood, Pamela Robinson reached out to her longtime friend Catrina Dyer-Taylor to gather for a jump-rope session in Chicago in 2016. They quickly found many other women all over the country who were eager to revisit the games of their childhood. Soon after, they founded the 40+ Double Dutch Club, multiplying the number of fellow jumpers by the dozens in no time. Pamela and Catrina believe their mission resonates with so many women because it gives these women an opportunity for selfcare during a period of life when they are often caring for others. What started with seven women in Chicago is today—thanks to word of mouth and social media—a movement of over 1,000 individual members spread out in 100 chapters around the United States.

“We always say that we come for the Double Dutch but we stay for the sisterhood,” says Denise LaSalle, captain of the Jackson chapter. When LaSalle and her sisters were growing up, they would secretly move their mother’s furniture before school to play Double Dutch. Now she finds that the game helps her and her fellow jumpers with both their mental and physical health. Hopscotch, jacks, hula hoop, and line dancing are also part of the Jackson chapter’s meetups, all set to a soundtrack of classic 1980s and ’90s jams.

At the 83rd National Folk Festival, the 40+ Double Dutch Club will be showing off their moves and offering visitors to the Family Area a chance to learn the ropes. LaSalle says that the club now often teaches Double Dutch to young girls who didn’t grow up with the tradition. It may be a great workout, but, promises LaSalle, “You’re having so much fun that you don’t even think of it as exercise.”