TheaterFire

Hey, so what was up with the fucking square dancing?

Posted by porkchopespresso@reddit | GenX | View on Reddit | 326 comments

Absolutely useless

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326 Comments

Avasia1717@reddit

wait, did everyone learn square dancing? i thought it was just my first grade class that did it, because our teacher was into it. it wasn’t in PE and it wasn’t the whole school.
View on Reddit #17316000

Objective-Amount1379@reddit

Northern Ca here, yes, we learned it too!
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Albie_Tross@reddit

Where? Maybe I know you!
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Objective-Amount1379@reddit

San Jose
View on Reddit #17516404

Albie_Tross@reddit

Same!
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AlienRosie@reddit

Central CA here, and we did too :)
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craftyrunner@reddit

Middle School PE! SJUSD.
View on Reddit #17338195

ToshiroBaloney@reddit

I grew up in NorCal, we did also!
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fake-august@reddit

Middle school in SF here - yep, we learned it. I preferred rope climbing 🤣
View on Reddit #17330772

Bleedingeck@reddit

Was living Wales, UK in the 90's. It was hilarious watching the local "Boyos" get rigged out in Stetsons and cowboy boots and put on that "Just moseyed into town with the rodeo" affectation. Seriously, it was comedy gold. Imagine a load of Texas crawling Tom Joneses and enjoy!
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FAHQRudy@reddit

Diphthongs Gone Wild
View on Reddit #17332728

Bleedingeck@reddit

Lol What we used to call them did start with the same letter.
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WaitMysterious6704@reddit

Tom Jones is cool, thank Wales for us please.
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Bleedingeck@reddit

I don't live there anymore, but will pass it on to family that do.
View on Reddit #17432154

HoMerIcePicS@reddit

We learned in grade school in Wisconsin. The whole school. It was part of PE along with the giant parachute.
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Retiree66@reddit

I go to monthly workshops of Creative Mornings, and a during a recent one we played with a giant multicolored parachute.
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ranciddreamz@reddit

NY near nyc. We square danced. I was liek the fuck is this?
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toomanyoars@reddit

1976 President Ford. It wasn't a mandate really but encouraged as part of the ' Bicentennial American Folk life Celebration.' It just continued after that because the school systems felt like (based on the 1950s) it made us 'more rounded individuals'
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Jillredhanded@reddit

We were doing it a few years before 76.
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PowerUser88@reddit

We did it during a local Spring Break day camp at the Y in Canada. I was 8 and not very comfortable being made to dance/hold hands w/boys that early. Couple years later, totally different story, lol. I don’t think I was the youngest age group either.
View on Reddit #17334471

BloodSweatAndWords@reddit

That giant parachute ruled!
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toomanyoars@reddit

I think even now if someone pulled out that parachute I'd be right in the middle of it...my old, broken body would just have to risk it.
View on Reddit #17333884

abstractraj@reddit

We did it in suburban Michigan. Have never had a need for it. Swing dancing may have been good. It really had an upsurge in the 90s
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motiontosuppress@reddit

When I started dating my sister, it really impressed our parents when I knew how to dosie-do at the barn dance. Now we have four little hemophiliacs of our own!
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OldButHappy@reddit

Bless their (defective) hearts!
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viewering@reddit

lol should have seen my face when i read that first bit !
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okieskanokie@reddit

Such a romantic love story…? 👀
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belinck@reddit

Carpenter Elementary in 1982 in Ann Arbor... I think we did it in 2nd grade.
View on Reddit #17354201

phoonie98@reddit

Same in suburban New York
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HoweHaTrick@reddit

I think that was the most awkward gym activity.
View on Reddit #17334455

ElRaymundo@reddit

Minnesota checking in.
View on Reddit #17375158

fujiapple73@reddit

We learned it in 5th grade at an overnight camp/field trip. We also learned ballroom dancing (box waltz?) in music class
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The_Outsider27@reddit

We had to learn it in high school gym class. I liked it better than volley ball. Dosey-doe
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Playful-Natural-4626@reddit

Racism. I know you think I’m joking, but go google “square dancing and racism”
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The_Outsider27@reddit

You may be right. I never understood why kids in suburban Chicago had to learn it but not other styles of dance. As kids we did not question it. So was it a federal mandate that it had to be taught in PE classes?
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Lily_V_@reddit

We learned tinikling in 9th grade PE at my all girls high school. It’s a Philippino dance.
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Glittering_Way5285@reddit

I'm white and lived in a mostly black area. We did square dancing in 6th grade and the PE teacher had us square dancing to Michael Jackson.
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mcluhan007@reddit

One of my gym teachers was African American. She taught all of us little suburban white kids to dance The Hustle. 😂
View on Reddit #17339140

HelenGonne@reddit

My tiny small town Catholic parochial grade school taught both in gym class, square dancing and The Hustle. Was teaching The Hustle some kind of standard response back then by teachers who were irritated by the square dancing mandate?
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Freakishly_Tall@reddit

Hero. That must have done way, way, wayyyyy more for your social life than square dancing skills ever could have! I can't be the only one who held up walls at college parties waiting for a chance to show off my dosey-doh'ing that never came....
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Freakishly_Tall@reddit

This is one of those times where the old reddit awards would have come in handy. This answer needs wayyyyy more attention, cuz it's correct.
View on Reddit #17339891

Suspicious-Pea2833@reddit

Well, that was an interesting read. I'm constantly amazed at the manipulation and nefariousness of the most simple things.
View on Reddit #17332272

chl0525@reddit

Kansas City, Missouri did it!
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JeffTS@reddit

Here in the mid Hudson Valley of NY, we had it in high school. But, I'm also pretty sure we had it in elementary and middle school too. And it was taught during PE.
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ApeCitySk8er@reddit

7th grade PE here in the PNW. It was honestly a lot of fun.
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AbysalChaos@reddit

Duh
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Pretend_Low_8491@reddit

We learned it and had to perform it at my elementary school in Houston.
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TheRitalinCommando@reddit

My brother had it in 10th grade PE. This was in rural Michigan in 1980. I never did.
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Tariovic@reddit

We did it in the UK. Sometimes it was called country dancing. I liked it, but then, I was bad at sport and okay at dancing.
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HeavySkinz@reddit

NC here and yeah, every fucking year in PE we spent a week doing square dancing in Jr high.
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FergusonTEA1950@reddit

Rural Nova Scotia. We did square dancing in grade 5. Having to have a GIRL partner was so gross! lol
View on Reddit #17330892

wino12312@reddit

We did in 2nd grade, live on SW Ohio. I have no idea why. We also had a luau in 3rd grade. I still remember how the poi tasted.
View on Reddit #17330372

Green_343@reddit

I thought we did it at my school because we were in Oklahoma.
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allaboutmojitos@reddit

New Jersey - K through 5th grade - it was a PE unit
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C-romero80@reddit

My elementary seemed to do it grade 5 for some reason.
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TipsKraken@reddit

Yes, late 70's, elementary school, San Diego.
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PDM_1969@reddit

That was the worst part of gym class.
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rocket_mclsoth@reddit

it was a Henry Ford thing. He was a very strange person with LOTS of money and influence.
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trashbox420@reddit

From your post, I researched this, and holy crap, Ford was racist AF. This is such an insane story. And of course Reagan was involved in part of this.
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Anya1976@reddit

And very racist.
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RabbitsAteMySnowpeas@reddit

It’ll come in useful in a few years from now, after the apocalypse, when the survivors are living in the agrarian neo-amish enclaves at the edges of the wastelands.
View on Reddit #17389483

LBQ-7044@reddit

New York — Long Island. It was part of PE; and we had to perform square dances as part of sports night in 6th grade. Would have been late 70s.
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IAmAgent57@reddit

Speak for yourself. I still square dance at 52 and I love it.
View on Reddit #17387957

WhiplashMotorbreath@reddit

o/p isn't thinking correctly. Think of it like a horny teen, alot of moving and chances of touch.
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Retiree66@reddit

When we did it at school, my mom told me it was dangerous for adults to do it (as her sister sometimes did), because you dance with other people as you move around the “square” and that might lead to marital affairs.
View on Reddit #17386835

ha1029@reddit

Junior High was square dancing for PE. By my senior year it was aerobics in PE. Was laughed at more so in aerobics lol than square dancing. I guess because any potential dancing and rhythm skill was destroyed by square dancing lol...
View on Reddit #17386708

Retiree66@reddit

Did y’all do that popcorn dance?
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redquailer@reddit

Yep, we did it for quite a few years in elementary school and junior high. I really liked it. The only part I didn’t like was that the boys had sweaty hands. 😆
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loonygecko@reddit

I somehow got assigned with a bunch of stoners and contrarians in my square so we started doing mosh pit square dancing which was loads of fun. We'd try to trip, fling, push, etc each other as we did the dance but yet still manage to finish. We'd all be roaring laughing and the teachers would get so irked but we did in fact still know the dance and we'd finish it somehow most of the time as long as no one tripped or went flying too badly. We stayed just inside the technical letter of the law. So ironically I have very found memories of square dancing, unlike probably every other square besides us.
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REDDITSHITLORD@reddit

According to my experience at reenactment balls, you were probably doing it more correctly than you think. Imagine doing it drunk, and flinging particularly petite partners at their next partner with reckless abandon, and them drunkenly whirling into them like fluffy giggling missiles.
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loonygecko@reddit

Haha that sounds like way more fun!
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REDDITSHITLORD@reddit

It was a BLAST! But I think that was the point. I'm guessing, originally, there was a fair bit of drink involved, and mostly young people frolicking, with live music. Square dance is pretty rustic, so it was bound to be drunken and raucous.
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C-romero80@reddit

What grade did you do yours in? Mine was 5th, weren't any stoners yet...contrarians sure, but none quite that bold at my school 😂
View on Reddit #17320786

Bright_Broccoli1844@reddit

High school
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loonygecko@reddit

I did mine in jr high and it was in northern california.
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Fiver43@reddit

I secretly loved it but was too cool to admit it.
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Roofofcar@reddit

I got not one but two girlfriends out of square dancing.
View on Reddit #17384956

VioletVenable@reddit

Ditto! A nice break from the stressful (to me, anyway) gym stuff.
View on Reddit #17325476

StopSignsAreRed@reddit

Well how else would I learn what an Allemand left is?!
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PoppaBalloon@reddit

True story, in one gym class I screwed up the Allemand left twice. My gym teacher got literally furious, went into her office and came out with a permanent marker and wrote a big R on my right hand and L on my left while the whole class watched. Great times.
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StopSignsAreRed@reddit

Ah, PE humiliation - old school style.
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laugh_hack@reddit

So later we could truly appreciate The Rodeo Song.
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LeoPelletier@reddit

Well it's 40 below...
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ToshiroBaloney@reddit

And I don't give a fuck....
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MicesNicely@reddit

Got a heater in my truck…
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i_m_sugarcat@reddit

Is that how it’s spelled? 😂
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BloodSweatAndWords@reddit

Never used my square dancing skillz after the 5th grade. Sad! But I remember they put Devil Went Down to Georgia on the record player in gym class while we dose-do'd. Hilarious that this was some kind of weird nationwide mandate. Sure would have liked to learn swing dancing as a kid. That would have been useful when it came back in fashion in the 90's.
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AnswerGuy301@reddit

My hometown was pretty diverse, even in the mid-80s, and had a decent sized Jewish community. And yet the weird Henry Ford-inspired square dance thing persisted at my elementary school at least that long.
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puffedovenpancake@reddit

Square dancing was a ton more fun than the two months of volleyball. Standing in one place and being yelled at for missing the ball every time was torture.
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Significant-Oven-896@reddit

My wife and I were talking about this last night. She grew up in Illinois with a stint in Kentucky and was subjected to square dancing as part of PE. I grew up in Kansas and not once in my entire schooling was there square dancing. I’d never heard of it until I met her.
View on Reddit #17379681

joefatmamma@reddit

Ha we had it in gym up in CT , heart of dixie
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ghjm@reddit

My gym classes were full of every conceivable physical activity. Bowling, badminton, archery, dodgeball, swimming, baseball, basketball, football, field hockey, team handball, climbing weird rack shit that went halfway up the walls, some crazy game involving a big parachute, and yes, square dancing. It didn't come across as particularly strange given all the other stuff they made us do.
View on Reddit #17316417

toomanyoars@reddit

Ugh... dodgeball. I couldn't dodge, duck, dip, dive OR dodge.
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darkmatternot@reddit

You gotta pay extra for that...
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luna-potter@reddit

We had a rope to climb to pass the class.
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DaisyJane1@reddit

Dodgeball RULED.
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catastrapostrophe@reddit

I think that was the point of square dancing, along with all the other weird stuff they had us doing. They were trying to get everybody into the habit of doing 30 minutes a day of *it doesn't matter what just move your damn body around somehow.* Some people had fun dancing, some people liked the gymnastics. Other people liked the volleyball, or basketball, or jogging, pushups, or whatever. The intention was to just show everybody a whole range of ways of getting exercise. And optimistically people carried on that habit of getting 30 minutes of whatever into their real lives after they graduated. I have come to believe that Gym was probably the most important class we had. (And I'll tell you what -- if you *did* carry on that habit of consistently getting in your 30 minutes a day of whatever, you'd be better off than like 75% of people.)
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LadyTanizaki@reddit

It literally was a program instituted in [schools to counteract the influence of jazz and keep people on a good moral compass](https://qz.com/1153516/americas-wholesome-square-dancing-tradition-is-a-tool-of-white-supremacy#:~:text=Along%20with%20his%20wife%20and,and%20by%201928%2C%20almost%20half)....
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dumpcake999@reddit

the big rack must be illegal now. I wonder how many kids cracked their heads open or broke their arms falling
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everything_is_holy@reddit

I loved the giant parachute!
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MissKisskoli@reddit

Same here. Also add discus and shot put throwing, hurdles, golf etc. It’s so weird when I think about it now.
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Anya1976@reddit

That all started because of Henry Ford and his racism. You can Google it.
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EFCF@reddit

I FEEL SEEN
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Lily_V_@reddit

Ugh. We had it in Catholic middle school. Always messed up when I had to dance with my crush.
View on Reddit #17372793

buttercreamordeath@reddit

We did that too. But, one set of my four grandparents actually did square dancing and clogging for fun. I got to go one night. Square Dancing I understood. Clogging? No, just no. This was the decade of Gregory Hines and TAP! Clogging was the very uncool version of tap dancing.
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bene_gesserit_mitch@reddit

A lot of things I had to do in gym class I've not used since. Shuffleboard, rope climbing, holding up the wall after too much horseplay.
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beachtrader@reddit

I learned square dancing and “the hustle” in gym class in Kansas. But we also sang southern confederacy songs too in music.
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Enthrallen@reddit

I don't know I quit this thread after seeing the word "nefarious". Jesus fucking christ.
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AzureGriffon@reddit

As with many of the things I experienced in the 70s, a piece of me died during square dance days. Old men in embroidered western shirts with snaps and old ladies with voluminous petticoats would come to our class to teach us the joys of living like we were in a little house on the prairie via Hee Haw.
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ladywholocker@reddit

It was humiliating. The teacher could've just paired us up. Instead we were 4 Asian girls standing by the wall and the teacher eventually picked out the four tallest blond boys and made them dance with us.
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International_Lake28@reddit

Should I stop putting that I know how to do si do on my resume?
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GenericRedditor1937@reddit

No, I would say it definitely needs to be higher on your resume. Maybe even before experience. What hiring manager is going to give a shit about 10 years as a senior level employee at a Fortune 500 when they see that you can do si do. They'll see that skill and say we need to hire that person now and fail to read anything after. This will also hide large employment gaps as well if you have any.
View on Reddit #17367328

earinsound@reddit

i loved it, mostly because i was good at it which meant the cute girls wanted to be my partner. ah….5th grade
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GenericRedditor1937@reddit

In Minnesota, we had a dancing unit in PE every year that I remember well enough. Definitely before 4th grade through 9th grade. It was awful. It wasn't always square dancing either. At some point, we started to foxtrot and waltz. Besides the swimming unit during middle school, it was the most emotional abuse I felt my school administration inflicted upon me during my school years.
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Timely-Youth-9074@reddit

5th Grade. I think they were required to do it! It was supposed to be some cultural thing. Square dance is fun.
View on Reddit #17366803

whineybubbles@reddit

I thought is was because I was in Texas
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MamaJody@reddit

We even did this in Australia.
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DaisyJane1@reddit

Oh god. Middle school. I *hated* it, cos I was so clumsy I always was one of the last one chosen. The PE teacher made us divide up into teams, and each team captain got to choose who they wanted on their team.
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OkOwl2339@reddit

My entire 5th grade class. The Virginia Reel. On stage in the auditorium for a forced school talent day or some bullshit like that. A couple people in class lost their step about halfway thru and it was a domino effect. All of a sudden, we all forgot how to do-si-do like we had practiced for weeks and started ripping off our crepe paper sashes, giggling and totally embarrassing our teacher. I still feel bad about that.
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TrapperJon@reddit

Racism. No, seriously, racism. Square dancing curriculum as attached to federal education funding. It was supposed to "preserve white culture" as old white dudes were afraid that white kids were being seduced and corrupted by "black music". And since music leads to dancing and dancing leads to sex that would mean the "contamination of the white race." So, yeah. We had to learn to square dance because a bunch of racists were afraid white kids and black kids would start fucking.
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nedgon@reddit

Fuck that stupid shit! My high school PE class had to do this for an entire week. We then got a grade at the end of the week after having to partner up and square dance in front of everyone. Ungh
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sedona71717@reddit

How about the cargo net, though?
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the_spinetingler@reddit

Racism.
View on Reddit #17315621

Moragu@reddit

The answer is nearly always racism in some way or another
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entrelac@reddit

This needs to be the top comment.
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After_Preference_885@reddit

That so many still don't know about this is really sad. [America’s wholesome square dancing tradition is a tool of white supremacy](https://qz.com/1153516/americas-wholesome-square-dancing-tradition-is-a-tool-of-white-supremacy)
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benmabenmabenma@reddit

This is the answer.
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the_spinetingler@reddit

Henry Ford, specifically.
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HapticRecce@reddit

Sure beat climbing up a 2-story high rope with a one inch mat to break your fall...
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hryan3@reddit

I was waiting to see this in comments!!
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IAmACanadaGoose@reddit

*Everyone* did this?? I thought it was just our area! I remember everyone fleeing to the bathrooms to wash hands afterwards. Ugh!
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ranciddreamz@reddit

National mandate
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IAmACanadaGoose@reddit

Holy crap! That's *insane*!
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oyismyboy@reddit

I thought maybe just my city for it's "cowboy roots" but I'm dumbfounded to see it was everywhere, including the US! Never have done it again. 😆
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IAmACanadaGoose@reddit

Yeah, I've never *ever* used my square dancing "skills". 🤣
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wadkins75@reddit

Henry Ford paid schools all over the country to teach square dancing because he was a white supremacist. From the article: "Ford [*hated* jazz](http://www.blacdetroit.com/BLAC-Detroit/November-2016/How-did-country-music-become-so-white-Blame-Henry-Fords-war-on-jazz/); he hated the Charleston. He also really hated Jewish people, and believed that Jewish people invented jazz as part of a nefarious plot to corrupt the masses and take over the world—a theory that might come as a surprise to the black people who actually did invent it." [https://qz.com/1153516/americas-wholesome-square-dancing-tradition-is-a-tool-of-white-supremacy](https://qz.com/1153516/americas-wholesome-square-dancing-tradition-is-a-tool-of-white-supremacy)
View on Reddit #17356819

labeleduncurable@reddit

In PE class, we had to do that stupid dance with the two poles on the ground, clacking together. Lame shit.
View on Reddit #17356246

NightWalk77@reddit

Well it is good exercise and kind of fun but I do like to dance,
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TesseractToo@reddit

Who knows but Cracked had an interesting thing on it [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CxEZMXnQGs8](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CxEZMXnQGs8)
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Super_Hour_3836@reddit

Came here to find this. Was asked to write an article on the rise of square dancing a few years back, found all this info, and the article was canceled. It’s always racism.
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LadyTanizaki@reddit

here's another article with quotes too: [https://qz.com/1153516/americas-wholesome-square-dancing-tradition-is-a-tool-of-white-supremacy](https://qz.com/1153516/americas-wholesome-square-dancing-tradition-is-a-tool-of-white-supremacy#:~:text=Along%20with%20his%20wife%20and,and%20by%201928%2C%20almost%20half)
View on Reddit #17352267

sodagoddess@reddit

Oh man, I used to LOVE Cracked. I learned a lot as well. I actually have come to trust them as a source
View on Reddit #17316095

TesseractToo@reddit

2000's Cracked is a different company, they bought the name and copyright but it's still quite good. I was actually surprised they are still making content, they shut down for a while and the writers do other things like Behind the Bastards podcast and Some More News YT show This little clip surprised me, they don't have citations, it should
View on Reddit #17316176

soopirV@reddit

I check their site almost daily when I’m bored at work.
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EndOk2237@reddit

Ah! That explains why the hosts of both shows talk like that. They both have that loud know it all voice.
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TesseractToo@reddit

Yeah they have that peppy cadence I like BtB more, SMN has degraded to just a lot of jokes a 12 year old would make
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BoneDaddy1973@reddit

I highly recommend Cracked alumnus Alex Schmidt’s podcast “Secretly Incredibly Fascinating.”
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TesseractToo@reddit

Thanks!
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_X_marks_the_spot_@reddit

That is WILD. And also explains something I've always wondered: why American kids did square dancing in gym class, but Canadians didn't.
View on Reddit #17317814

TesseractToo@reddit

We did it in Alberta
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kamomil@reddit

We did it in Ontario
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TesseractToo@reddit

Hmmm I wonder which Canadians they meant
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flex_capacity@reddit

We did in Australia
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Jerkrollatex@reddit

It's always racism. :(
View on Reddit #17320732

TesseractToo@reddit

Yeah :(
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SummerBirdsong@reddit

God fucking damnit. Why did I know the outcome before even clicking?
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baron7755@reddit

What fucking square dancing?
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SerialNomad@reddit

Coordination exercise. We had to listen and move correctly or throw the whole line out. Made us better factory workers.
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twasatenthontuesday@reddit

It was passive aggressive "physical education". I still hate my PE teacher from elementary school. Yeah you Ms. Anderson!
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filburt99@reddit

I always thought it was a Florida thing, we had it in 7th and 8th grade it was awkward. The only upside was you didn't have to change or shower after
View on Reddit #17351399

CanYouHearMeSatan@reddit

Far more useful than handball
View on Reddit #17351210

LocalInactivist@reddit

I guess it was that or more dodge ball. Or that weird parachute thing.
View on Reddit #17320695

Recklen@reddit

If you can dodge a wrench you can dodge a ball.
View on Reddit #17350898

ftrade44456@reddit

Wierd? Those were the best days!
View on Reddit #17338153

LocalInactivist@reddit

Yeah, it was fun. However, how did it happen? “We’ve got a bunch of old military surplus stuff. What should we do with it?” “I dunno, send it to the grade schools and let them figure it out.”
View on Reddit #17340888

LittleAlienLost@reddit

Northeast PA...in the boonies. We were years behind on trends...but not on this. We absolutely did square dancing in P.E. There's no way that this wasn't a national standard education thing. My school wasn't doing anything because it was trendy.
View on Reddit #17350412

MadPiglet42@reddit

Our gym teachers offered it as punishment if we didn't sack up and play dodgeball.
View on Reddit #17349102

thanx_it_has_pockets@reddit

Easy cardio
View on Reddit #17348831

CyndiIsOnReddit@reddit

Oh I remember square dancing quite well! We always had some unit on it in school PE in elementary school but my best friend was ALL in to it. Had those ridiculous fancy dresses and tap shoes too.
View on Reddit #17347687

NoLongerGage@reddit

Pretty sure it was all a conspiracy to introduce us to Cotton Eye Joe at a young age.
View on Reddit #17315247

probably_to_far@reddit

Well..........if it hadn't been for Cotton Eye Joe......
View on Reddit #17316758

AuntieEvilops@reddit

I'd have been married a long time ago.
View on Reddit #17317039

1BiG_KbW@reddit

Where did you come from?
View on Reddit #17318967

Surroundedbygoalies@reddit

Where did you go?
View on Reddit #17319710

CrossingTheStreamers@reddit

Where did you come from, Cotton Eye Joe?
View on Reddit #17327473

jnx666@reddit

r/redditsings
View on Reddit #17346728

jnx666@reddit

We did in Miami and Ft. Lauderdale, Florida in the 70s and 80s. I absolutely hated it.
View on Reddit #17346592

EljayDude@reddit

I enjoyed it but looking back it was weird they presented it as something you would need to know how to do as an adult.
View on Reddit #17346317

singleguy79@reddit

Learned it in 5th grade...I think?...Square dancing and the Cotton Eyed Joe. Haven't done either since then
View on Reddit #17345743

MrPanchole@reddit

A North American elementary school teacher and administration-wide conspiratorial inside joke on kids that played out for more than one generation. That was the point.
View on Reddit #17334923

After_Preference_885@reddit

[America’s wholesome square dancing tradition is a tool of white supremacy](https://qz.com/1153516/americas-wholesome-square-dancing-tradition-is-a-tool-of-white-supremacy)
View on Reddit #17344991

TigerMcPherson@reddit

Henry Ford, and racism. Totally strange, but true.
View on Reddit #17344986

MarmotJunction@reddit

I always thought it was something encouraged by Henry Ford, to keep white kids away from the dangers of Jazz and the lindy hop? Basically undercover racism.
View on Reddit #17341120

Mastodon996@reddit

This. There have been articles published about it, just search.
View on Reddit #17344915

elijuicyjones@reddit

White morons were in charge so yep, square dancing.
View on Reddit #17344686

MiriMidd@reddit

We did that too! I actually liked square dancing for gym. It was better than team sports.
View on Reddit #17343444

JediKrys@reddit

I was prepped for a life of line dancing/ square dancing. I’ve not used my training since…..
View on Reddit #17343379

BigFitMama@reddit

It was fun. Cute outfits. Cross-Generational bonding. And it made way for the contra dancing movement in the 1990s.
View on Reddit #17342848

ClmrThnUR@reddit

it's Henry Ford's fault for being a racist and hating jazz. for real, google it.
View on Reddit #17342595

angrymonk135@reddit

They still do this
View on Reddit #17342332

Maleficent-Sport1970@reddit

OH. It was fun and funny. Good exercise.
View on Reddit #17342280

GlossyBuckslip@reddit

Ugh. Rain days meant one of two things, square dancing or tumbling…(((shuddders)))
View on Reddit #17342064

The_Observer_Effects@reddit

"Useless" - ? Well ok, it can look pretty dumb from outside their culture. But it is certain that they find a mosh-pit, firedance, dance battles or etc to be just as silly. Who cares? At least they are being social in person. (I think it looks silly too. So I don't pay attention to it.)
View on Reddit #17341993

12sea@reddit

We did square dancing every year (rural nw PA). My grandparents used to square dance on weekends, but I never saw my parents do anything of the kind!
View on Reddit #17341925

doublehaulrollcast@reddit

Lack of creativity by faculty, hence the parachute bullshit.
View on Reddit #17341865

atomic_chippie@reddit

Square dancing and that gddmned recorder. We must have been incredibly obnoxious children. Ps. Giant parachute days, tho.
View on Reddit #17341699

OneSweetShannon2oh@reddit

Racism.
View on Reddit #17341376

DrkVeggie99@reddit

oh my gawd, I forgot about that shit. Yeah WHY??????
View on Reddit #17340922

Emotional_Estimate25@reddit

We all said we hated square dancing, but as a middle schooler, we would mentally count off and reorganize the lineup to make sure we got to hold hands with the cute guy.
View on Reddit #17340053

Psychological_Tap187@reddit

Eighth grade. Why. Just why was it so important our generation knew how to square dance?
View on Reddit #17340012

PersonalImpress9802@reddit

sounds pretty fun to me
View on Reddit #17339968

LucilleBluthsbroach@reddit

Ok, but why on God's green earth were they doing this in the UK?!😯🤔
View on Reddit #17337719

porkchopespresso@reddit (OP)

That’s crazy. I almost put an asterisk to at least acknowledge I may excluding the non-Americans who follow this sub but apparently Australia, Canada and the UK also did it, which does kinda blow my mind.
View on Reddit #17339641

Send_noose_not_nudes@reddit

My mother did it alot, some competitions too I think, and unfortunately that made me her practice partner.
View on Reddit #17339607

madtownjeff@reddit

Administrative double dip. They could say we had a music class and a PE class at the same time.
View on Reddit #17339539

AustinGroovy@reddit

All that time invested in HS Gym class? Gotta use it...
View on Reddit #17339199

AuthenticCounterfeit@reddit

The actual truth: Henry Ford was a Nazi, hated black people and jazz music, though Jewish people were spreading jazz to undermine American values, and sponsored an educational dance program to get white people to do white people dances. https://qz.com/1153516/americas-wholesome-square-dancing-tradition-is-a-tool-of-white-supremacy
View on Reddit #17339001

Kit3399@reddit

In my suburban Houston elementary school, we not only did square dancing but tinikling, where you hopped in and out of the clacking poles.
View on Reddit #17338845

i_m_sugarcat@reddit

I’ll never forget the feel of the awkward sweaty palm on my square dance partner.
View on Reddit #17338569

pinchehuevos76@reddit

Boomer indoctrination
View on Reddit #17337825

Comedywriter1@reddit

“Swing your partner round and round and throw them on the ground.” 😂
View on Reddit #17337375

Hooliken@reddit

Let me play you some Hot Cross Buns on my recorder............Laughs in Kenny G voice.
View on Reddit #17335020

KDPer3@reddit

What's wild is I remember learning the recorder and square dancing and cross stitch. Now ask me for any of the capitals I sweated to learn for countries that no longer exist. Theoretically it's all "learning to learn" and if they were more on it we'd have learned about our learning styles, work environments, interests, etc to help us make choices later. School's wild
View on Reddit #17336791

WingZombie@reddit

Radio Lab did a great podcast explaining how the whole square dancing in school became a thing. It's worth checking out.
View on Reddit #17336677

ivyjade42@reddit

I don’t know. But it was the only thing in gym class I didn’t suck at 😀.
View on Reddit #17336636

dmoe0826@reddit

High school PE, square dancing in the 90's. So many people I tell are confused about that....unless they're one of us.
View on Reddit #17336592

ezk3626@reddit

Teacher perspective: the specific skills that PE is trying to develop in children is coordination between fine and gross motor functions. The purpose is not merely exercise and sports but learning g to use your body. Add some “we need to respect American culture” ideology and “sports aren’t everything” people and you get square dancing. I wish I had done much much more square dancing.
View on Reddit #17336179

Key-Contest-2879@reddit

It was part of our 8th grade gym class. I just figured it was cuz it was too cold out in the winter and they needed something to fill in for a few weeks after Christmas break until it got warm out.
View on Reddit #17336169

provisionings@reddit

I made the newspaper square dancing in grade school. It was fun
View on Reddit #17336145

anythingaustin@reddit

I failed PE class because I refused to learn how to square dance.
View on Reddit #17335847

cropguru357@reddit

Northeast Ohio west of Cleveland. Yep, us too.
View on Reddit #17335787

Life-Unit-4118@reddit

Atlanta. 100% required in late 70s and early 80s in middle school. No GWTW references, but still made no sense.
View on Reddit #17335384

SC_Nico74@reddit

Culture. The point was to learn American Culture.
View on Reddit #17321827

sophandros@reddit

Yep. Racism is a massive part of American Culture.
View on Reddit #17326965

SC_Nico74@reddit

How does race factor into this? I said *culture*.
View on Reddit #17327016

sophandros@reddit

Have you looked at American history at all? Or at least the last 8 years?
View on Reddit #17327455

SC_Nico74@reddit

....and again, what does this have to do with square dancing?
View on Reddit #17327532

sophandros@reddit

Racism and antisemitism are the reason it became a thing in schools. https://www.mic.com/articles/186892/how-square-dancing-became-a-weapon-of-white-supremacy-against-an-anti-semitic-jazz-dance-conspiracy
View on Reddit #17327664

SC_Nico74@reddit

Ok, well, *thanks for that*. I mean, I've never been a fan of Ford anyway, but now even moreso..... Is there *anything* American that I'm allowed to be proud of anymore? I was on the invasion into Iraq, so I'm not proud of my military service. I was a prison guard who walked away from the career because of politics, so I can't be proud of that. Up until I left the military, I was a Republican, so *that's* right out. I'm not allowed to enjoy being white. I'm not allowed to enjoy being male. What the fuck have I got left to be proud of?
View on Reddit #17328147

cajunjoel@reddit

Help people who need help. Defend your country from threats foreign *and* domestic. Be a good, kind, and decent person. Make art. Make music. Bring joy to someone's life. Vote for people who are trying to make the world better, not those who are making *their* world better. Those are all things to celebrate and be proud of. Being white and male is fine as long as you can recognize how it affects your life and how *whiteness* has affected the lives of non whites. But I get it, I really really do. I've struggled with my own cis het white maleness and my place in the world. Just because square dancing was forced upon kids across the country because of racism and antisemitism doesn't mean you can't still enjoy it. It's not your fault you were introduced to it because of that. But knowing the history of it helps you to see that there are insidious forces at work within our society and we should always be on the lookout for them. Square and contra dancing can still be fun and you can still choose to partake with no shame or reservations.
View on Reddit #17334475

sophandros@reddit

>Is there *anything* American that I'm allowed to be proud of anymore? Yes, there is a lot. When examining our history, it's also important to acknowledge and celebrate the progress we've made. We have a responsibility to examine the bad stuff so that we don't repeat it, and part of that process is celebrating the good stuff that came as a result of our decision to live up to the ideals we claim to adhere to.
View on Reddit #17331566

SC_Nico74@reddit

Such as......?
View on Reddit #17333872

IrrelevantREVD@reddit

The stuff they want to keep from you. Jazz is completely American.
View on Reddit #17331562

IrrelevantREVD@reddit

If you mean Henry Ford was a massive anti-Semite and believed that Jews were controlling blacks with reefer and jazz music so to counter it, he gave states massive grants to teach square dancing to hopefully keep kids away from Jewish-backed black music… then yes- that is American culture.
View on Reddit #17331516

w4nderlusty@reddit

Canadian here: we had to do this also 👀
View on Reddit #17324988

Thurkin@reddit

Achey Breaky Farts?
View on Reddit #17334406

ExploreTrails@reddit

They still do it and I still don’t know how
View on Reddit #17334348

LetsHaveFun1973@reddit

They had us promenading in New York City during the birth of Hip Hop…
View on Reddit #17334326

SufficientZucchini21@reddit

I loved it, actually.
View on Reddit #17334319

GreatGreenGobbo@reddit

Suburban area in Ontario Canada here. We did for some unknown reason.
View on Reddit #17326079

IrrelevantREVD@reddit

You did it because Henry Ford REALLY hated Jewish people.
View on Reddit #17331590

GreatGreenGobbo@reddit

WTF?
View on Reddit #17331991

cajunjoel@reddit

Scroll around this thread. You'll see some links to more info.
View on Reddit #17333811

ipini@reddit

Calgary myself. So… yeah.
View on Reddit #17326828

GreatGreenGobbo@reddit

Right but....at least you're Calgary. We don't have a stampede in Toronto. DVP and 401 don't count.
View on Reddit #17327073

HannahCaffeinated@reddit

9 times out of 10, if we are talking about American history, the answer is racism. Sometimes it’s evangelical Christianity, though, just to make it a little more interesting. Sometimes it’s both! *exasperated American sigh*
View on Reddit #17317983

cajunjoel@reddit

You're not wrong. Scroll around and you'll find that it was Henry Ford and he was a raging racist.
View on Reddit #17333700

thedatagolem@reddit

I thought it was awesome. I can't stand country music, and I was confident that I would hate it when I found out it was required. But I had a blast.
View on Reddit #17333604

Drillerfan@reddit

https://qz.com/1153516/americas-wholesome-square-dancing-tradition-is-a-tool-of-white-supremacy
View on Reddit #17331411

PBJ-9999@reddit

Interwebs "journalism". Lol what a joke
View on Reddit #17333503

PBJ-9999@reddit

Idk but Its how my parents met . Damn that square dancing lol
View on Reddit #17333406

temporary_8675309@reddit

9th grade PE class. Central CA.
View on Reddit #17333244

W0gg0@reddit

I don’t remember square dancing, but I *do* remember learning The Hustle.
View on Reddit #17332950

moneyman74@reddit

It's dancing And exercise! 2 for 1
View on Reddit #17332462

dumpcake999@reddit

more like square walking, am I right?
View on Reddit #17332194

SelectionNo3078@reddit

Yes. Late elementary school gym class. In SC.
View on Reddit #17332120

Bleedingeck@reddit

No clue! I spent the 90's giggling at that one.
View on Reddit #17332049

JJQuantum@reddit

When I was little I lived in TX for about a year. We had an elementary school musical where everyone ended up square dancing for like 3/4 of it. I am likely the worst dancer the planet has ever seen. I volunteered for AV. Of course I’m now a commercial AV program manager so I guess there’s that.
View on Reddit #17331997

generalsleephenson@reddit

Square Dancing, Contra Dancing, this is a good time, now!
View on Reddit #17331868

Bluepilgrim3@reddit

I didn’t even think this was a real thing but I’m in the reaches of northern New England. My theory is that it’s a holdover from colonial days since we were settled by zealots who put people in the stocks for whistling, and hanging witches based on the testimony of tweens.
View on Reddit #17329448

IrrelevantREVD@reddit

Nope, you square danced because Henry Ford was a crazy anti semite
View on Reddit #17331637

Gotthold1994@reddit

Not only square dancing but Clogging, I still have 1 or 2 friends that do both.
View on Reddit #17331350

green_velvet_goodies@reddit

All through elementary school in freaking central New Jersey. Every damn year for at least a week. It was equally humiliating and stupid.
View on Reddit #17331340

darwinn_69@reddit

This article is over the top by quite a bit...but I still found it entertaining. https://qz.com/1153516/americas-wholesome-square-dancing-tradition-is-a-tool-of-white-supremacy#:~:text=Along%20with%20his%20wife%20and,and%20by%201928%2C%20almost%20half
View on Reddit #17331218

destroy_b4_reading@reddit

At least in IL, public schools are required to teach x number of hours of "arts" to every student. Doing six weeks of square dancing in gym class fulfills that requirement.
View on Reddit #17330927

u35828@reddit

I had to learn square dancing for a play my 8th grade teacher was directing. The whole voluntold experience had me quietly seething.
View on Reddit #17330728

dougmd1974@reddit

Well, it got people moving around instead of just sitting there all day.....but yeah I always thought it was pretty corny LOL They made us do it in private school for the first few years I was there, probably up until 5th grade or something.
View on Reddit #17330624

Beruthiel999@reddit

I'm from a region that it's truly native to (Appalachia) and I know there's a history of forcing it on people all over the country... I did really enjoy it though. I have to say I was so glad to have it as the day's exercise in health class because it was so much more relaxed and enjoyable and fun than any sport where you might get hit in the head with a ball. As an adult I *have* willingly done more square dancing than I have any sportsball stuff.
View on Reddit #17319312

kellzone@reddit

I grew up in rural PA in the mountains and we had square dancing in the third grade. About once a week if I remember. It wasn't our gym period though, because I remember having gym afterwards sometimes, then recess. It was like the easiest day when they all lined up.
View on Reddit #17330390

linuxgeekmama@reddit

I liked it better than any sport that required me to throw something at a specific target. I am not good at that. I liked dodgeball better than those sports, too, because it didn’t matter if I couldn’t throw the ball to a specific place. Team sports where I was supposed to throw a ball at a specific target were even worse, because I got blamed for dragging down my team.
View on Reddit #17330128

Bright_Broccoli1844@reddit

> than any sport where you might get hit in the head with a ball. It's not right that we were put in an unsafe environment.
View on Reddit #17327955

RhoOfFeh@reddit

I dunno man, but I was there in a concert shirt and long hair. My god, I was Rednexx!
View on Reddit #17329392

Just_Membership447@reddit

As a nerdy grade schooler, just took it as an opportunity to hold hands and dance with the cute girls.
View on Reddit #17329377

labboy70@reddit

Elementary school and high school in California . Hated it.
View on Reddit #17329091

CardinalHawk21@reddit

I say an article recently about this but I can't remember where. Basically Henry Ford thought jazz was jewish music and since Henry Ford was antisemitic he was looking for a way to keep people away from jazz. To do this he decided to push square dancing and country music. One of his methods was to get the school systems to teach square dancing.
View on Reddit #17328999

fridayimatwork@reddit

I actually liked it!
View on Reddit #17328967

my-cat-cant-cat@reddit

We had it in elementary school, but it pretty much disappeared after that. But I went to one of those large 2800 student high schools, so we actually had different gym electives each quarter. (We had 4 gyms, a pool, a dance studio, football field, soccer field, and baseball diamond). Just for dance we could choose from a couple levels of ballet, jazz and social dance. I think they threw a few days of square dancing in social dance, but everyone preferred contra dancing (fewer random people’s sweaty hands). But social dance also covered waltzes, salsa, and some other stuff I’ve long since forgotten. (But for me, dance, archery and fencing were definitely more fun than running circles on that indoor track.)
View on Reddit #17328770

ripper4444@reddit

This question has haunted me since the 80’s. I’m so glad I’m not alone.
View on Reddit #17328495

Daisy_W@reddit

I always assumed that was just in Pennsylvania
View on Reddit #17328334

Icy_Umpire992@reddit

its better than dancing in a circle... thats pointless.
View on Reddit #17315203

This_IsNot_ALoveSong@reddit

Multiple cultures enter the chat...
View on Reddit #17328093

RedYamOnthego@reddit

We square danced in a circle . . . .
View on Reddit #17318191

chumpy551@reddit

It's better than dancing in a triangle... that's less points
View on Reddit #17315393

Xistential0ne@reddit

I can think of a couple points for line line dancing.
View on Reddit #17315586

BoneDaddy1973@reddit

My father and stepmother were really into square dancing for a while in the late ‘80s. Turns out it people were swinging their partners round and round in more ways than one, and things got pretty wild in the square dance event hotels. There was a really great Radiolab episode about our weird fascination with square dancing. https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/birdie-in-the-cage/id152249110?i=1000454567072
View on Reddit #17327904

MadMatchy@reddit

Thanks. Ptsd
View on Reddit #17327791

dancurranjr@reddit

BELIEVE IT OR NOT . .. Henry Ford! [The Surprisingly Racist Origins Of Square Dancing In Gym Class (youtube.com)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CxEZMXnQGs8)
View on Reddit #17316481

doffraymnd@reddit

Should be top comment.
View on Reddit #17327596

AbazabaYouMyOnlyFren@reddit

I hated that shit.
View on Reddit #17316047

ReadyOneTakeTwo@reddit

Same. Some hillbilly ass shit that is completely useless. About as useless as learning “¿donde esta la biblioteca?”
View on Reddit #17316148

bythevolcano@reddit

La biblioteca está en la ciudad
View on Reddit #17316999

ReadyOneTakeTwo@reddit

Màs cervezas y tequila por favor.
View on Reddit #17317181

TheArtOf2and4@reddit

Me llamo Juan y me gusta queso.
View on Reddit #17327276

ReadyOneTakeTwo@reddit

¡Yo soy queso grande!
View on Reddit #17327352

countesspetofi@reddit

And kickball was useful somehow?
View on Reddit #17317741

kamomil@reddit

We did deck tennis 🤷‍♀️
View on Reddit #17323565

ReadyOneTakeTwo@reddit

It wasn’t, but tether ball was fun as hell.
View on Reddit #17317993

AbazabaYouMyOnlyFren@reddit

I lived in some Spanish neighborhoods so, it came in handy for me later on in life. It came in handy for understanding Italian when I was there a few times. A lot of the words are very similar, or close enough that it's easy to remember. For example: "dove è la biblioteca?"
View on Reddit #17317388

Coconut-bird@reddit

Northern Florida, it was a regular unit in high school PE. As someone who usually hated PE and particularly team sports, I loved square dancing. And I remember working up a sweat doing it. So it was at least meeting the goal of keeping us active!
View on Reddit #17327323

freemindjames@reddit

It helped me be less shy around girls when I was in elementary school. But other than that, it did seem rather silly ... I kept thinking it was something really old people did.
View on Reddit #17327209

PeopleLikeUDisgustMe@reddit

They did it so we could all recover from all of the broken and mashed fingers from playing scooter hockey.
View on Reddit #17327020

GenXhuman@reddit

I never did it, but my parents were big into it during the 70's. When I was a wee lad, they would leave me with grandma so they could go and square dance the night away with their friends.
View on Reddit #17326687

Roguefem-76@reddit

Huh, I never did it in school, and I would have rather liked to. I always loved dancing.
View on Reddit #17326666

meowzerbowser@reddit

Idk but I'm pretty sure that's where my social anxiety started 😆 it was awful
View on Reddit #17326005

BingoSpong@reddit

I went to a boys school……🤦‍♂️
View on Reddit #17325874

Jld114@reddit

I always secretly enjoyed it. I HATED team sports with a passion
View on Reddit #17325562

REDDITSHITLORD@reddit

I liked it. For one, it was an opportunity to dance with girls. There were no school dances, and while most guys weren't interested, man, I sure was. For another, on the playground, it inspired our own version of the Virginia Reel, we called "The Dance of Death", which was a gauntlet of 2 lines windmilling their arms while 2 "death dancers" would race down the line and the "winner", would then attempt to keep the loser inside the gauntlet as long as possible. It was up their with dodge ball for me.
View on Reddit #17325442

flex_capacity@reddit

Now grab your partner and do se do
View on Reddit #17325391

Mamaj12469@reddit

Those 6th grade gym classes had to come in handy eventually
View on Reddit #17324949

Heidan20@reddit

Heel, toe, heel, toe, slide, slide, slide, slide. Ah yes, HPE lessons at school!
View on Reddit #17324813

crzysully@reddit

🎶"Swing yer partner round and round... doo doo doo, and flush them down..."🎶 Haha, oh man. Memories.
View on Reddit #17323479

LeoMarius@reddit

Anti-jazz campaign bu Henry Ford. https://qz.com/1153516/americas-wholesome-square-dancing-tradition-is-a-tool-of-white-supremacy
View on Reddit #17322688

_Eyelashes@reddit

racism
View on Reddit #17321612

gaxxzz@reddit

It pissed me off even at that age.
View on Reddit #17320573

geodebug@reddit

Dancing for gym class was weird and awkward. But so was everything else.
View on Reddit #17319850

Baby_Button_Eyes@reddit

I never appreciated having to touch numerous boys' sweaty hands during the flu season. I remember our square dancing unit was during December and everyone in the grade basically touched everyone else's hand. Ew!
View on Reddit #17319424

whiskeydevoe@reddit

There was some story I heard a few years ago that it was because of Henry Ford wanting to make sure we all did it (because racism and antisemitism). Here’s a link outlining it: https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZT8X3Wwre/
View on Reddit #17317889

countesspetofi@reddit

It was no more useless than anything else we ever did in PE, and it was much more fun. Folk dancing, parachute day, and archery were the only bright spots in 13 years of torture.
View on Reddit #17317706

CobblerCandid998@reddit

Never had to, but have seen it in old fashioned movies…
View on Reddit #17317440

Stardust_of_Ziggy@reddit

They had to find the most non-physical (chest-to-chest) dance possible...It caught educational fire!
View on Reddit #17317219

SnowblindAlbino@reddit

We spent the better part of a week in 1977 learning the Virginia Reel. It was *very* useful when my kids had to do the same in the early 2010s. We bonded over that shared experience in fact. That was the only time it's come up since 1977 for me.
View on Reddit #17317063

ae314@reddit

We did square dancing and the Mexican hat dance. And tinikling.
View on Reddit #17316577

Aggressive-Bike7539@reddit

It's called cursor, and it's where what you type will appear in console terminals and in MS-DOS.
View on Reddit #17315127

BookerTree@reddit

Open Apple c means copy
View on Reddit #17316421

Admiral_Andovar@reddit

Easy to do, checks two boxes (music and activity), and leaves tons of space between the naughty bits for the Holy Ghost.
View on Reddit #17316115

trinitronsea@reddit

Scroll through Reddit . This has been covered like 5,492 times.
View on Reddit #17315719