Girl Gangs, Zines, and Powerslides
- Natalie Porter
- Sep 13
- 5 min read
Updated: Sep 13
One of the first questions I get asked regarding my new book Girl Gangs, Zines, and Powerslides: A History of Badass Women Skateboarders is "How long did it take you to write?" It turns out that this question is harder to answer than I thought. After my pitch was accepted by ECW Press there was a two-year period of writing and editing, and that’s been my easy answer, but the thirty-year backstory, including the evolution of the Womxn Skateboard History archive, is more challenging to articulate.
Fortunately, my editor encouraged a first-person narrative because, while interviewing these fascinating senior skateboarders, whose stories were often buried or ignored, I felt connected to them and unable to be a silent narrator. Girl Gangs, Zines, and Powerslides has partly become "my story" and how I moved from a place of hurt and anger to a position of curiosity, activism, and joy.
I grew up with two big brothers on a forested dead-end street in small town Ontario, where the neighborhood kids would meet-up for games of street hockey and capture-the-flag. My family didn’t own a television, so I became an avid reader (we lived two blocks from a Carnegie Library), dividing my time between nerding-out and running wild. I was introduced to snowboarding in 1988 and encouraged to be independent and athletic, but while my brothers took up skateboarding, I was directed towards other sports that were less notorious as a rebellious activity.
Naturally, I pursued skateboarding with great interest as a teenager. In 1995, I found my brother’s old Santa Cruz in the closet and began the painful journey of learning how to skate solo until I moved to Vancouver and became part of my first girl gang! As the book title suggests, girl gangs became very important because when we form collectives, we are more powerful to cultivate change. For example, in 1998 my group of friends along with several motivated young women convinced the organizers of the annual Slam City Jam contest to include a division for female street skaters, and then a vert contest the following year, which was unheard of.
The challenge for female skateboarders and our progression, has been a lack of recognition and opportunities by the industry, and a lack of continuity in knowing our history. It is important to have mentors and heroes to emulate but because skateboarding media has consistently focused on professional male skaters and their legacy, every new generation of female skaters thinks that they are alone. In 1998, I remember being shocked when a friend’s parent shared their Skateboarder magazines from the 1970s which were full of female skateboarders in interviews, contest results and ads. It was both exhilarating and infuriating to realize how ignorant I was of the past.
When I pursued a master’s degree in 2001, I moved to Montreal and became part of a girl gang called the Skirtboarders, who produced a website, a zine called Armpit, and two videos. I wanted to write a thesis paper about this thriving movement, and one friend tried to dissuade me, suggesting a broader topic like skateboarding media or just women in sport. I am so glad that I ignored him because that thesis became a foundation for this book. Twenty years ago, I wanted to turn that thesis into a gorgeous coffee table book but rejections from publishers and the challenge of reaching out to people before social media existed were barriers and made my dream feel impossible. There were also personal trials related to #metoo experiences that sidelined my progress.
Another question I’ve been asked is, if this book would be appropriate for a child. I’m happy that people associate skateboarding today as a fun opportunity for young girls, but the history of women’s treatment by the skateboarding industry has been a roller coaster ride and my book is a gritty reminder of where we’ve come from. Skateboarding as a male-dominated pursuit has mirrored mainstream society, which is patriarchal and at times, misogynist. And I would not be doing anyone a service if I watered down #metoo stories or ignored toxic issues.
I don’t want to give the impression that Girl Gangs, Zines, and Powerslides is a burdensome read because I think the stories are accessible, relatable, and often hilarious but more appropriate for an older teen. I am a librarian and while my expertise leans towards digging into databases and scouring the internet for resources, I hope that the reader learns something new. Unlike current political powers who want to erase challenging histories, I think it’s important to reflect on one’s privilege, understand the past, and be part of a movement that values inclusivity.
To clarify, Girl Gangs, Zines, and Powerslides is not a timeline or a “Who’s Who” of skateboarding. I structured the book with a different theme for each chapter and wove together narratives that demonstrated our complex history. If you’re looking for biographies, I recommend my archive Womxn Skateboard History with over 300 bios organized into decades. I plan to keep composing these bios because there’s still work to be done and more people to be represented!
There’s been times that I’ve felt like an imposter, like who am I to try to alter skateboarding history, especially since I am a middle-aged skater with limited skill. But I hope that readers will feel a connection with my story and the many skaters represented. It’s been a long ride to get here, and I am so grateful to all the skateboarders, zine collectors, photographers, editors, and the skateboard community who have embraced me because this book would not have existed without their support (and that includes you!).
Additional Information
Natalie Porter, the skater librarian behind @womxnsk8history, launched in March 2022. She is the lone female skater-historian on the Smithsonian Museum’s Skateboarding Advisory Board, in anticipation of a traveling exhibit. Natalie began skateboarding in 1995, and in 2003 she was the first academic to write a thesis paper from the perspective of women skaters called Female Skateboarders and their Negotiation of Space and Identity.
Order Online: Girl Gangs, Zines, and Powerslides: A History of Badass Women Skateboarders, request it from your local library, or visit an indie bookstore to own your copy of this game-changing book. You’ll discover a rich history of female and non-binary skateboarders from the 1950s to the present who skated relentlessly, created a community outside of the mainstream industry, and demanded change and opportunity for all. Happy reading!
Olympian @nnieguglia said “This book reclaims a legacy that was always there but had been buried or erased,” Dr. Indigo Willing @goodwillinghunting wrote “All thriller, no filler. Natalie Porter shreds through the grip-taped ceiling” and author Kyle Beach @themostfunthing described it as “monumentally inspiring.”
All photos courtesy of Natalie Porter
© 2000-2025 withitgirl. All rights reserved. We appreciate your feedback!