Nick Gabaldón Day - Images by Fabian Lewkowicz

Surfers celebrate Nick Gabaldón Day at Santa Monica's "Inkwell" beach on Saturday, June 1, 2013. Nick Gabaldón Day honors the legacy of Los Angeles' First Surfer of Color. Nick Gabaldón was a Santa Monica High School student who in the 1940s became the first documented surfer of African American and Mexican descent at a beach site formerly referred to as the “Ink Well.” Gabaldón’s legacy has inspired many surfers of color and otherwise to consider him as a role model. The event includes free surf lessons, beach and history exploration and a screening of White Wash," a documentary exploring the complexity of race in America through the eyes of the ocean. Nick Gabaldón Day is sponsored by Heal the Bay.