Filming and editing by Katon Black.

Photos by Jacob King and Dom Westbury.

Interview by Zach Moeller.

“The Sanctuary” Part 1 is a skate film by Katon Black, starring himself and dear friend Roland Wiley. This film takes place on the south side of Chicago, on the top floor of a school that was closed down by mayor Rahm Emanuel in 2013. It became a safe haven for skaters over the cold months. This film is about friendship, community, having a place to skate during cold winters, and most importantly the love for the art we create. Guest appearances by Deric Esparza, Jody, Julian Izaguirre, Frankie Winley, Jake Oakes, Corey Henderson, Mark Padilla, Billa, Hideaki Normura, Aaron Davis, Adontis, Marlen Aguirre, Desiree Rosario, Komla Amoaku, Peter Scaletta, David Rodrigez, and Karim Woods.

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How did you originally come across this space and what led to it being a skatable space?

So I originally met the man who owned and ran programming out of the building about a year prior to the filming of this video. He saw me out skating one day on the south side of Chicago when I was filming for my part Seamoss. He was super nice, and hyped to see me out skating. It’s his voice actually, at the beginning of my Seamoss part, that asks for my name and then says, “Katon Black, my favorite skateboarder.” So a few months down the line from meeting him then, I showed my mom my Seamoss part, and she said she knew that man. Crazy how the world works out. So she gave me his number and I asked him if I could put some skate obstacles on the 3rd floor of the school to have a space to skate during the winter months. You also gotta understand, here in Chicago, there are no indoor skate parks in the city, especially on the south side. They’re all super far out in the suburbs and cost anywhere from $10-15 to skate. I understand they have bills to pay but not everyone can afford that just to skate. So we were super hyped to have this new space, and me and some friends started building manny pads, ledges, banks, wall rides, and flat bars for the spot. 

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You mentioned at the end of the video that you needed permission to be in this space, can you elaborate on that?

Yes you need permission, from either me or my homie Roland, who is my friend who also starred in the film. We consider it our space. We don’t ask for money, just for consideration. We’re responsible if anything happens up there, like broken windows or if kids start tagging up there. Shit like that. So we ask anyone viewing the video to not look at this project as just an abandoned place to wreak havoc. Someone generously let us use the space, and we generously let other people use it, but only when they have our permission. We have had so many different skaters through the space from local Chicago legends to people you never heard about. Skaters from all backgrounds, all different parts of the city. And everyone who has come so far respected the space and respected our rules. 

Do any of the children affected by the school closures in Chicago skate at this space?

Yes. If you notice in the video there were two younger kids who we brought into the space. We just happened to see them out skating one day, through the window of the school. The kid who I got a clip of, his name is Karim Woods, he literally lives right next to the school. Had the school still been open till this day that’s where he would have been attending. And this happened all over the south side of Chicago. As I mentioned in the beginning of the film, I think it’s important to know, out of all the 49 schools that got closed, 80% of the kids impacted by this were Black kids. I think that isn’t a coincidence at all, and really speaks to who the city prioritizes and who they could care less about. 

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Even though this space is no longer an open public school, I think it’s fair to say it is still a place of education. What do you hope people learn when they come use this space?

I would totally agree, it is still a place of education. Even before we put our skate obstacles on the 3rd floor, there was another program running out of the gym. It’s a basketball youth basketball program and they provide kids with a space to continue to grow their skills through the winter months. Just like skating there are virtually no places on the south side of Chicago where young basketball players can go to hoop over the winter months, especially ones that are free. So yes, this building has become a place for people to still learn. One thing I do want people to learn when they come to this space is that it takes community. Growing up I would always hear my mom say this saying, “it takes a village,” and man this school speaks to that. Because it truly does take a village, even when all odds are against you. Even when your city is is pulling out resources from your community, as long as the village is still there, we can overcome despite the cities discrimination. We have to fight back for something that should be a birthright, the freedom to a public education. But if we can’t even get that, at least we can do something like what folks have done at this school and continue to use the building as a breeding ground for education, self expression, creativity, and the development of the youth. And I understand it isn’t everyday that someone has the ability or capital to buy a school, so if no one had made that commitment, they might have just destroyed the building. So I’m extremely grateful that they were able to keep this building standing and use it as a place to continue to help the community prosper.

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Tell me about some of the happiest moments using this space.

Every moment we breathed in this space was a happy moment in my eyes. This space was unlike anything ever witnessed for the skate community in Chicago. A lot of people who describe it as some real Tony Hawk Pro Skater ass shit. But truly man, this building was magical. For me and Roland, it was our first time being able to skate through the winter without having to travel so far because we both didn’t have cars, or pay to skate. There was no heat in the building so as you can tell from the video, we would be in there freezing our asses off, but at least it was dry, it was safe, and there was no wind. With all those things eliminated all you had to do was dress warm and be content shredding! Some of the happiest moments though maybe came from dialing in tricks we really wanted. Like when Roland lands a backside 180 switch manny 180 out. You can see in his face his reaction and the atmosphere of the room, how genuinely siked he was and every was for him. It truly was a special moment. Or when I finally landed that fakie flip switch manny, you can just see the excitement burst through the room. The other best memory was literally just from being a facilitator, being able to use this space to share it with other skaters from the city. Skaters would travel from all different directions to skate this little spot me and some homies made. How magical is that? Skaters from all different backgrounds, skaters who never met, they would all meet here and everyone would get along and be homies. That was the real magic of this spot, being able to connect so many skaters from different scenes. And the final blessing besides was simply just being able to be there. Man, in all seriousness, it was unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. Unlike anything any Chicago skater has ever experienced. 

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It’s clear that the city does not care about the communities affected by these closures but it is rad to see the community you are helping to build take care of its self and others surrounding it. Do you have any future plans for this space or others like it? In what other ways are you looking to provide for the south side community?

Well the biggest way I plan to provide for the south side is through my skate lessons and providing free resources like apparel, shoes, and boards to kids. My brothers and I started this small organization called Natty Bwoy Bikes & Boards. We were the only skate shop on the south side of Chicago, and we sold a few hard goods out of a shipping container in Bronzeville. For over a year now, during the good weather months in Chicago, I have provided free skate lessons every Sunday for two hours at a park right by my house. Growing up as a skater on the south side I didn’t see many Black skaters out there, and when I did it’d be magical. My goal is to help this next generation of south side skaters through my lessons, providing resources, and exposure. Exposure is the biggest thing, I’m sure I would have started skating sooner if only I was exposed to it sooner. So hopefully in the future seeing Black skaters out is just as common as any other. I really want to provide spaces for young Black skaters to grow and develop and feel like they belong. Growing up there weren’t any real places to go if you were looking to get into skating on the south side, I hope to change that for the future. In terms of the Sanctuary, for now it’s just a breeding ground for us older skaters until I can find a way to make the space safer, warmer, and more inviting for young kids. And I’ll reiterate once more that someone does own the space and they purely let me and my homie be there from the kindness of their heart. This isn’t an abandoned building that anyone can go to, you need permission from us to skate there. 

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