Rose Bowl Aquatics Center, City to Commemorate Naming Pool After Dr. Griffin in May

The Rose Bowl Aquatics Center’s Recreational Pool will be renamed in honor of the late Pasadena civil rights leader Dr. Edna L. Griffin (1905-1992).

Griffin, a trailblazer in social justice, served as the first Black female president of Pasadena’s NAACP branch (1938-47) and led the charge in desegregating the Brookside Plunge. 

In collaboration with the City, the RBAC will commemorate the Recreational Pool’s renaming in May 2024, coinciding with Water Safety Month. Various pre-event activities will support this celebration.

Last year, the City’s Recreation and Parks Commission on Monday voted to recommend the City Council name a new municipal swimming pool after the City’s first Black female doctor Edna Griffin despite public support for former Council member John Kennedy.

However, the City Council instead opted to name that pool after Kennedy and Councilmember Justin Jones recommended the RBAC pool be named in Griffin’s honor.

“Pasadena’s history reflects that of the United States, where economic conflicts have often been framed racially,” Jones said. “One of the best ways to understand and navigate the present effectively is to study and understand the past. My great-grandmother was in the courtroom when the NAACP and Dr. Griffin sued the City for racial discrimination at the municipal pool.”

In 1914, the Brookside Plunge, a municipal pool, was declared a racially segregated institution, African-American residents were only allowed to use the pool one day a week. It was drained and refilled for white residents the next day. In 1942 the Pasadena NAACP under the leadership of Dr. Griffin, led the successful legal desegregation effort of the Brookside Plunge. 

The RBAC was established in 1990 on the former site of the Brookside Plunge.

“It is an honor to name the RBAC’s Recreational Pool after Dr. Griffin, celebrating her enduring impact on justice and equity in the City of Pasadena,” said Jimmy Francis, president and executive director of the RBAC. 

Naming this pool, with its diverse range of activities that promote wellness and water safety, symbolizes our commitment to upholding her legacy. The RBAC is dedicated to serving our community with equity. We are more than a pool, we are a community resource where everyone is welcome.”

District 1 Councilmember Tyron Hampton said in a prepared statement that preventing access to a public pool and denying the opportunity to learn a crucial life skill harmed not just our community but the entire region. 

“Today, the RBAC inclusively welcomes everyone, offering access and life-saving water safety instruction in our public schools. Like many residents, I learned to swim at the RBAC.”