United States of Tennis: Black Girls Tennis Club liberates Black women and girls both on and off the court

In “United States of Tennis," our Baseline editors Stephanie Livaudais and Liya Davidov set out to document some of the city’s most unique tennis experiences and iconic venues.

Currently in Norfolk, Va., and across New York City, Black Girls Tennis Club is building a unique community that transcends the tennis court, sparks friendship, and embraces mind and body wellness.

What started out as a shared dream of owning and designing a hotel quickly turned into a game-changing non-profit for tennis when Virginia Thornton and Kimberly Selden discovered their mutual passion for the sport.

“We selfishly started Black Girls Tennis Club wanting to bring ourselves together,” Thornton says in an exclusive interview with Baseline. “It went from hotel to tennis in 2.5 seconds.”

THE GIST

Founded in 2022 in Norfolk, Va., Black Girls Tennis Club offers tennis clinics to both women and girls, each of which also includes holistic wellness programs.

“Our mission is to liberate Black women and girls through play–we specifically didn’t put tennis in there because for us, it’s more than tennis,” Thornton says. “Tennis is really the pathway towards radical wellness, joy.”

Emphasizing community with C.A.R.E.–culture change, access, representation, exposure–Black Girls Tennis Club is making sure everyone feels welcome on the court, and wants to use that comfort to break down barriers.

“A lot of women, Black women specifically, have this weight of perfectionism, but when you see all of you on the court, it kind of gets rid of that mask, and the more you get comfortable on the court, the more you can show up authentically on a court where nobody looks like you," Thornton says.

"It’s a way to let loose authentically."

THE VENUE

Black Girls Tennis Club offers separate programming for adults and children, but they center around a common theme: tennis, of course, but also leaning into personal growth off court.

Women partake in “mindful play," an integration of yoga into practice, and cardio tennis, as well as regular tennis practices. Off court, they attend networking events and community involvement opportunities, such as the WTA Finals Watch Party in New York City.

For young women, the organization has deeper intentions with the clinic they provide.

“We really have these girls’ attention,” Thorton says she noticed after their first ever girls' clinic in Virginia.

“We’re putting on this program not realizing that we’re also their mentors," Thorton adds. "That really made us double down on our mission. We got in contact with an educator and made a whole curriculum for the girls.”

Everything from hair to nutrition to journaling to mindfulness to icebreakers is part of building a community for young girls who discover tennis for the first time–and also themselves.

Black Girls Tennis Club is currently in two locations and is hoping to expand into Washington, D.C., as early as 2025.

THE SELLING POINT

“Our goal is to break down the barriers of entry that come with tennis, especially in a city like New York where the demand is really high to play,” says Black Girls Tennis Club coach Alyssa Portee. “A lot of our girls have found community through coming to our clinics, participating in off-court events, network and making new friends.”

The organization’s board includes Wimbledon champion Taylor Townsend and a Virginia local city council member who helped advocate for a city-wide court-resurfacing initiative that is now going into effect.

One city, one event, one clinic at a time, Black Girls Tennis Club is using tennis as a catalyst to empower women and girls.

“I’m not trying to develop the next Serena Williams,” Portee says. “My way of giving back is being able to expose people to these opportunities.”