Black and brown girls swirling circles around the competition and the world – that is Sharon Cohen’s hope for the future. Figure Skating in Harlem is a group she founded that has dedicated itself to both mentoring and providing a safe space for young black and Latina girls – and by doing so on the ice.

The program was founded in 1997 after Sharon Cohen, who started the group, was shocked to see an all-black hockey team in East Harlem. Having been a national gold medalist, Cohen was inspired to not only create her own diverse team, but also to use the program as a way of representing young black and brown women in all fields. The girls all take classes in science and technology twice a week and through this dedication, the program encourages and ensures that all the young women seek higher education.

“I don't have to explain myself when I'm skating,” Ila Epperson told ABC News. “It just kind of guided me in the right direction. This is who I am. This is what I want to do and this is what I have to do to get there.”

“Diversity is something that is not seen enough everywhere,” she added. “Like when was the last time you had a black person in the Olympics?”

The girls often face discrimination, and Jean-Michael recalls a moment when another girl group made snide comments about them, and loudly worried about whether or not the Harlem team would steal their belongings. Prejudices faced can be both overt and covert, and for the group of young girls, this can be intimidating to tackle.

“It was definitely intimidating but then I realized that there is nothing intimidating about it, it's just actually inspiring and empowering to be the only girls of color,” said Epperson’s closest friend and teammate, Destiny Jean-Michael.

Cohen hopes to expand Figure Skating in Harlem and start a second chapter in Detroit, whose communities struggle with education, economics and representation.

Geneva Williams, who is director of Figure Skating Detroit, agrees that the key to the future begins with cultivating the youth.

“Detroit, we're in the midst of a terrific wonderful transformation. We're going to be bigger and better than we've ever been before,” Williams said. “To have attention focused on developing young women because it's all about girl power – this is a place to have that happen.”

Firgure Skating Detroit

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