Water Safety in South Asian (Desi) Communities

Many South Asian families in the United States include parents and grandparents who never had the chance to learn to swim. You can change that for your family in practical, respectful ways: sign up children and adults for swim lessons, use modest swimwear or women-only sessions if that matters to you, make sure grandparents and relatives who watch children follow the same water rules as parents, and know that 911 and 988 can connect you to an interpreter.

Why this matters to the Amin family

The Amin Foundation was started by a Bangladeshi-American family from Queens, New York, in memory of 18-year-old Basir Amin and his 34-year-old brother-in-law Afrid Haider, who drowned in August 2022, and Basir's 21-year-old sister Nasrin Amin, who died in September 2022.

In their statement in September 2022, the family wrote:

"Lack of water safety/swimming education is rampant in the desi community as well as in other minority communities in the United States."

The same statement describes the foundation's mission: "to raise awareness around water safety education and the need for proper training and equipment for emergency response personnel. The organization also strives to provide scholarships for swimming lessons to underserved communities and lend emotional support to families dealing with drowning-related loss." This page is part of that work. You can read more about the foundation.

What we know, and what we don't

We want to be honest about the data.

• No national figure exists for desi communities. The CDC's 2023 survey found that 40 million U.S. adults (15.4%) said they don't know how to swim (opens in a new tab). It reports Black, Hispanic and White adults separately, but groups Asian American adults with "other" racial and ethnic groups, 22.4% of whom said they can't swim. There is no separate figure for South Asian or Bangladeshi Americans, and we won't make one up.
• Swimming tends to run in families. The USA Swimming Foundation says that if a parent doesn't know how to swim, there is only a 19% chance that a child in the household will learn (opens in a new tab). That's why lessons for adults matter as much as lessons for kids.
• Drowning is a major danger in parts of South Asia. UNICEF Bangladesh reported in 2022 that over 14,000 children in Bangladesh die from drowning each year (opens in a new tab), and that drowning is the second leading cause of death for children under 5 there. This is data about Bangladesh, not the U.S., but it matters for families who travel to visit relatives. The World Health Organization says more than 90% of drowning deaths (opens in a new tab) happen in rivers, lakes, wells, domestic water storage and pools in low- and middle-income countries.

Common barriers, and ways around them

Start with the youngest and the oldest

Children. The AAP says children can begin swim lessons after their first birthday, depending on readiness (opens in a new tab), and calls swimming "a child's first sport." Lessons are one layer of protection (opens in a new tab), not a replacement for supervision. At home, young children can drown in as little as 2 inches of water (opens in a new tab), so empty buckets, tubs and containers right after use, whether they're for bathing, washing or cleaning.

Grandparents and relatives. In many desi families, Nani, Dadi, Nana, Dada, aunts and uncles help raise the children. That is a gift. Make sure the water rules travel with the children:

• Stay within arm's reach. The AAP says a supervising adult who can swim should stay within arm's length (opens in a new tab) of infants, toddlers and weak swimmers. If a grandparent can't swim, another adult who can should be in the water with young children, while the grandparent watches from the side.
• Older adults are more likely to be non-swimmers. In the CDC's 2023 survey, 18.6% of adults 65 and older said they can't swim, compared with 12.4% of 18- to 29-year-olds.
• Bath time. The AAP recommends that children not bathe alone until they are at least 6 (opens in a new tab), and that young siblings never be left to supervise them.
• No phones while watching. The CDC says adults watching children should avoid distractions (opens in a new tab) such as reading or using the phone.
• Know 911. Practice saying the home address in English, and know that interpreters are available (below).
• For their own safety. The CDC advises avoiding swimming if medications impair balance, coordination or judgement (opens in a new tab).

Print the babysitter rules below in large type and put them on the fridge. Our guide to water safety rules for babysitters, nannies and grandparents has more.

Lessons, modest swimwear and women-only times

Finding lessons in New York City. NYC Parks Learn to Swim (opens in a new tab) is free, by lottery, for tots, children, adults and seniors. Indoor classes need a recreation center membership, which is free for anyone 24 and under. The YMCA of Greater New York offers free lessons for children (opens in a new tab) through New York State's NY SWIMS initiative. Our guide to free swim lessons in NYC lists every program we could verify, including in Queens. Outside NYC, use our Swim lesson finder.

Adults. NYC Parks teaches adults and seniors, and U.S. Masters Swimming has an adult learn-to-swim instructor search (opens in a new tab) by ZIP code. It's never too late.

Modest swimwear. Pediatrician Anisa Ibrahim, MD, FAAP, writing for the AAP, says parents have the right to dress their children more modestly (opens in a new tab) and still take part in lessons, for example with long-sleeved swimwear or leggings under shorts, and that many families don't know they can ask. (Her article reflects her views, not necessarily the AAP's.)

Women-only sessions. She describes a Seattle-area pilot of women-only swim sessions with female lifeguards and window shades that was so popular sessions often sold out. We haven't found a current women-only schedule for New York City that we can verify, so ask your local pool or recreation center directly, and ask your mosque, temple or community center to ask too. See swimming with modesty.

Getting help in your language

• 911. New York City's 911 system brings interpreters onto calls. The NYPD reports that in 2020 its interpreter service handled calls in 99 languages (opens in a new tab). Bengali and Urdu are among the ten citywide languages New York City designated under Local Law 30, and the NYPD's plan uses all ten. Stay on the line. Text-to-911 (opens in a new tab) in NYC works only in English and Spanish, so call if you can.
• 988. The 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (opens in a new tab) is free and confidential, any time. Calls have interpreters in more than 240 languages.
• Learning online. The Red Cross has free short online water safety courses for parents in English, Spanish and Haitian Creole (opens in a new tab). None is in Bengali or other South Asian languages yet, so a bilingual family member can help.
• Community health workers. Some groups serving South Asian New Yorkers work in community languages. For example, Sapna NYC (opens in a new tab) in the Bronx says its community health workers speak Bengali, Hindi and English, and SACSS (opens in a new tab) in Flushing posts notices in Bangla, Hindi, Punjabi, Gujarati and Nepali, among others.

We are working toward reviewed Bengali versions of our most important pages, including this one.

Talking with elders and relatives

Water safety can be a sensitive topic, especially if someone in the family has had a frightening experience or lost someone. Some approaches that respect elders:

• Lead with the children. "We want the kids to be safe with everyone who loves them."
• Ask, don't tell. "Did you learn to swim growing up? Would you like to?"
• Use the moments that already exist: a family dinner before a trip, a wedding or Eid gathering, the weeks before summer.
• Invite a trusted voice. An imam, pandit, priest, granthi or community elder can mention water safety at a gathering. See water safety for faith groups.
• Plan visits home. Before a trip to Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Nepal or Sri Lanka, ask relatives about ponds, rivers, wells and tanks near the house, and keep young children within reach.

Bring water safety to your community

Community centers, senior centers, youth programs and places of worship are natural places for a workshop. Groups serving South Asian New Yorkers include Chhaya CDC (opens in a new tab), SAYA (opens in a new tab), SACSS (opens in a new tab), India Home (opens in a new tab) (which runs programs for South Asian and Indo-Caribbean older adults) and Sapna NYC (opens in a new tab). They are independent organizations: we list them so you can reach out, not because they partner with us.

Our free community workshop plan is ready to use:

If you'd like to bring a workshop to your community, see how to host a water safety workshop or get in touch.

What you can do today

• Ask everyone in your household, including grandparents: "Can you swim?"
• Sign up one child and one adult for lessons this season.
• Print the babysitter rules for grandparents and anyone who watches your kids.
• Empty any buckets or tubs of water in your home.
• Save your address in English in your phone, and teach your parents to say it to 911.
• Share this page in your family group chat.