US gymnasts embrace activism
There was a time when Laurie Hernandez’s social media channels were filled with gymnastics videos, and photos of her family and friends. Occasionally, she’d post herself singing or learning a new song on the guitar.
You’ll still find all of that on her Instagram, Twitter and Tiktok pages. But you’ll also find support for Black Lives Matter, LGBTQ+ issues, gender equity and, in recent weeks, encouragement to vote.
And she’s not alone. Top U.S. gymnasts are making their voices heard, using their considerable platforms to drive conversations about equality and tolerance.
In an interview with Vogue this summer, Simone Biles spoke passionately about the killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, and the need to end systemic racism. Morgan Hurd attended the Women’s March in Washington, D.C., earlier this month – wearing a “Badass Woman” T-shirt, no less – and has links on her Instagram page to the multiple social justice issues she’s mentioned in her stories.
“With a lot of us younglings, especially as athletes, especially for the fact we all know each other, it’s really tough to either be in a community or see your friends in a community either not be able to be themselves or be treated fairly just because of who they are,” Hernandez told USA TODAY Sports.
“We’ve just had enough of it,” she added. “It’s 2020. There’s no reason to discriminate against people.”
The high-profile gymnasts are hardly the only athletes advocating for change and acceptance. Floyd’s killing in late May has forced a long overdue reckoning with racism and discrimination, and athletes have had a large role in the conversation.
But activism is not something traditionally seen in gymnastics, particularly at the elite level in the United States.
It’s not a surprise, really. The best gymnasts are typically in their teens or early 20s. They compete in a sport that is heavily subjective, from the selection of teams to judging at competitions. And the culture of fear that permeated the sport for far too long conditioned them to stay quiet.
But the bravery athletes like Biles and Aly Raisman have shown in acknowledging Larry Nassar’s abuse and holding USA Gymnastics and the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee to account for their failings has shattered that silence and emboldened other gymnasts to speak up.
“I, for sure, do feel a little more confident in speaking out,” Hurd said. “…It helps give me my voice.”
They also feel a sense of responsibility.
Both Hernandez and Hurd have sizeable platforms on social media. Hernandez, a gold medalist at the Rio Olympics as part of the Final Five, who went on to win Dancing with the Stars, has 1.5 million followers on Instagram, almost 600,000 on Twitter and another 400,000 on Tiktok. Hurd, the 2017 world champion and one of three gymnasts featured in the Olympic Channel’s All Around series, has more than 135,000 followers on Instagram.
When they have the chance to reach so many people, how could they not take advantage of it?
“Even if I did not have this platform, I feel like I’d still be speaking up,” Hurd said. “(But) I especially don’t want it to go to waste.”
There is a particular sense of urgency now, Hernandez said, because the issues the country is facing -- like climate change, racism and discrimination -are so important.
If we don’t act now, she said her generation fears we won’t be able to fix them.
“Gen Z, our blood is boiling about it,” Hernandez, who turned 20 in June, said flatly. “The earth is getting ready to burn and we’re ready to take out people? It just doesn’t make sense.
“If you turn a blind eye to a red flag, it doesn’t mean it goes away,” she added. “We want to make sure we’re pointing all of those things out, because we know we can.”
Both Hernandez and Hurd said they’ve gotten encouragement for their activism. Those who don’t feel they can speak out, particularly people who are marginalized, have thanked them for being such visible allies.
Given how polarized the country is, they’ve also heard from people who don’t support their stances.
But that won’t deter them.
“The young people, they are our future,” said Hurd, who is 19. “So many people in government are of that age where, in 20 to 30 years, they won’t be here anymore. They’re creating all of these problems and not trying to fix them. They’re making them worse. We don’t want to have to rebuild this entire system.”
Anyone who follows Hurd knows she is a voracious reader. Among her favorite books are dystopian novels, and Hurd said she used to wonder what she would do if she found herself in a situation that required her to take actions bigger than herself in order to save everyone else.
No more.
“What’s happening in these novels is what’s happening in real life now,” Hurd said.
“Of course we are fed up. We are fed up with a system that is clearly broken,” she added. “It’s not even like we’re asking for a lot. We are literally asking for basic human rights.”