“Melissa Utomo and Project Beta Are Trying to Save Climbing, From Itself”

JANUARY 24, 2021

If you’ve been following climbing news lately, you may have heard about the recent public outcry against hate speech. That includes pushback against climbing routes with racist, queerphobic, ableist and misogynistic route names, and a demand for greater accountability. After all, climbing guidebooks, climbing websites and major outdoor brands stayed silent on the issue for decades while continuing to publish offensive content. 

Last summer, I wrote an article titled How Mountain Project Stole from a Woman of Color & Spent Years Defending Hate Speech in the Climbing Community to help shed light on this important issue. If you’re wondering why mostly white authors would publish digital or print guidebooks with climbing route names like Slant Eyes, Lynch Mob, Case of the F*gs, Full R*tard & Tr**ny Swazy, we were wondering too. 

At the center of the uproar was Boulder-based climber Melissa Utomo. As a web developer and UI designer, Melissa is an advocate for accessible tech. While she isn’t the only person trying to hold the climbing community and outdoor industry accountable, she’s been the subject of a lot of media attention for her ideas on how to move forward.