I never said anything on here or on social media about #blacklivesmatter and George Floyd. I don’t have a large following on either, so I figured anything I would have said would have just gotten buried amongst everything else, and my voice isn’t large enough to truly make a difference.
But that’s a terrible excuse, and I apologize for not addressing it sooner. The truth is, it doesn’t matter if you think one or one million people will see your message; standing up for what’s right is necessary no matter what. I can’t go back in time to fix what I didn’t say or do two weeks ago, but I can make myself a better person for the future.
I’ve been following along with all of the tweets, Instagram and Facebook posts, and emails that have been posted and sent by brands, corporations, and influencers. I’ve been disgusted by the police brutality that’s occurred at protests, I’ve admired everyone who’s been using their platforms to call attention to all of this, and I’ve had some awkward conversations with my husband. However, staying behind the scenes isn’t good enough.
This isn’t an easy post for me to write, but the difficulty of writing this is nowhere near the difficult experiences of Black people and other people of color in this country. That’s why I’m refusing to stay silent any longer. And, because I want to be honest with anyone who reads this, I want to admit that the tipping point for me was the recent actions of some members of the Crossfit community, including CEO Greg Glassman himself. I’m not proud that this is what drove me to finally say something; I wish I had said something sooner. But I’m saying something now, and although any Crossfit fan with an Instagram account has undoubtedly seen everything going down this weekend, I’m writing this just in case someone does read this and wasn’t previously aware of the situation.
On Friday night, when I was scouring the r/Crossfit page on Reddit, I saw a thread with screenshots of some pretty vile text messages by Jessica Griffith and Travis Williams, showing the use of a derogatory racial slur by Jessica and Travis not understanding why the person it was directed to, Chandler Smith, was offended. You can find some of the screenshots here, and I think there are links to more within that thread. (Fair warning – they’re pretty rough to read.) I wasn’t following Travis on Instagram, but I was following Jessica. I immediately headed to Instagram to unfollow Jessica, but she had already deactivated her account by that point.
Then, back on Reddit, I saw more screenshots – this time from an email exchange between Alyssa Royse, the owner of Rocket Community Fitness (formerly Rocket Crossfit), and Greg Glassman. Alyssa had written a letter to Brian Mulvaney, chief advisor of Crossfit Inc., expressing her disappointment in HQ’s poor response (or lack thereof) to both COVID-19 and the death of George Floyd. Greg wrote this in response:
I was floored when I saw that response. I knew Greg didn’t have a reputation for being the most eloquent, empathetic guy in the room, but that complete lack of understanding and compassion threw me for a loop. My first thought was, “Yikes,” followed by “what a disgusting human being,” then “I can’t believe I’m associated with a company with a leader like that.”
Yes, by saying I’m “associated” with Crossfit, I mean that I’m the worst Crossfitter in the world, but still, it was already becoming clear to me that this wasn’t a company that I should keep supporting.
Then, this happened:
(To provide some context, Greg apparently was extremely dismissive of COVID-19 and how serious an issue it really was. His comment in the tweet above refers to his belief that George Floyd’s death is also not that serious and everyone is blowing it out of proportion.)
I was in shock when I read all of this. Crossfit has been the place where I’ve gone to feel better when I’m sad or anxious. When I’m stressed and not looking forward to a day at work, it’s the thing that gets me out of bed in the morning. It motivates me to start my day on a good note. Crossfit introduced me to people that push me every day to be better both mentally and physically. I hate the fact that this is what it’s come to.
It’s extremely disheartening and feels almost like a betrayal when a brand that I’ve followed for years shows their true colors. For most of the weekend, I was embarrassed that I’d ever been a part of it. However, I’ve been proud and inspired by how the athletes I look up to like Kristi Eramo, Rich Froning, Noah Ohlsen, Katrin Davidsdottir, Tia Toomey, and others have been taking a stand and announcing that they’re removing their affiliations with Crossfit. Rogue, Reebok, and NoBull have also made statements, as have countless other companies. At least I can be proud that the individual athletes I admire and the brands I like to support are doing the right thing, even though Crossfit, a sport I’ve enjoyed for the past five years, has not.
I’m also happy to report that my gym, previously named Crossfit ABP (which stands for Always Be Pushing), announced today that they are disassociating themselves from the Crossfit brand. They haven’t announced a new name, but I’m proud of them for not being afraid to fight against poor leadership at Crossfit HQ. They’re still closed because gyms haven’t fully reopened in NJ yet due to COVID-19, so there’s a lot of other things for them to still consider, I’m sure. But I’m glad to see so many people taking a stand, and can still feel proud to be a part of something where so many individuals and individual gyms truly care about equality, empathy, and community.
I really hope that Crossfit can make a comeback from all of this, even if it’s under a completely new name and requires some serious rebranding. It’s difficult to explain to people that aren’t a part of it, but it’s more than just working out for the vast majority of people. It’s empowered people and changed peoples’ lives, made them stronger and healthier, and given people a place to turn to when they feel like they have nowhere else to go. It’s not just fitness. I’d be heartbroken if all of that had to end because of the views of one terrible person.
