Break Dancing Fostered Black and Brown Unity. Some of Its Pioneers Worry of Erasure.

Gabrielle Chenault, alumna of The Young Women’s Leadership School of Queens and a contributor at L.A. Times, shares the history and evolution of breakdancing.

Published in L.A. Times on September 26, 2023

Breakdancing was started by Black and Puerto Rican youth in the Bronx in New York. Now it’s become a global sport, even earning a spot in the Olympics.

But some of its pioneers fear it may be a dying art within the communities that birthed it.

Spectrum News 1’s Kelvin Washington spoke with L.A. Times contributor Gabrielle Chenault.