Throughout their careers, for example, tennis stars Venus and Serena Williams have been the targets of racist and sexist comments because of their appearances. area, the bodies of black women have been subject to fetishization: for purposes of labor, reproduction or athletic entertainment.
Since the days of slavery, says LaNail Plummer, a therapist who specializes in providing mental health services to back and LGBTQ communities in the D.C. “Experts agree that especially for young black women, Biles’ actions were a signal that it’s acceptable to claim agency over both their minds and their bodies. It hardly mentions her athletic performance in 2021, suggesting that she actually won the award for not competing: TIME’s blurb about Biles reveals much of this ulterior motive. As a result, Biles is now “Athlete of the Year,” edging out athletes like Tom Brady, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Aaron Rodgers, Connor McDavid, and Nikola Jokić. So the media has aggressively rewarded Biles for her efforts. Listen to the language we’ve adopted.”īiles contributed to that cause. But it’s also become this total ‘Get Out of Jail Free’ card. The media gave both Cambage and Sherman a pass, even though their behavior was worse than what Biles did at the Olympics.ĭo you see what’s going on here? Sports pundits and athletes have calculated that they can use mental health for protection and social gain. In July, WNBA player Liz Cambage blamed her mental state for getting into a physical altercation and violating COVID protocols, and this past summer, NFL cornerback Richard Sherman blamed his mental health for his actions after police arrested him on charges of burglary and domestic violence. Meanwhile, some athletes have used mental health to excuse their poor behavior. The sports world has weaponized mental health like it has weaponized racism, turning it into a conversation-stopper to separate one team from the other, the good guys and the bad. However, that does not make her the top athlete of 2021. Both sides pandered, a word that precisely describes what TIME had done.Īt the Olympics, Simone Biles should have done whatever was in her best interest.
And that’s the issue with TIME naming her Athlete of the Year, a title apparently still of importance.Īs I argued at the time, people attacking Biles’ character were grandstanding, but so were those pretending her decision was an act of heroism. Some called Biles a quitter, while others deemed her a hero. Kaepernick praised Biles’ “grace, eloquence, and courage.”īiles’ decision split the country anew. TIME quoted Colin Kaepernick to validate its choice. It gave Biles the award because she bowed out of team competition at the 2021 Olympics for mental health concerns. TIME isn’t really interested in her athletic skill anyway. Why? Well because, to quote the outlet, she had “confusion in her eyes” and was “unsure of her whereabouts in midair.” Patituce added that Biles-Thomas has maintained his innocence for the last two and a half years “because he is frankly innocent of these charges and today we were able to see that the state had absolutely no evidence that he was guilty of this offense.TIME named Simone Biles the 2021 Athlete of the Year. So, we understand emotions were running high,” Biles-Thomas attorney, Joe Patituce, said.”But today, Tevin Biles was vindicated, what he’s waited to get for the last two and half years.” “This was a horrible tragedy, three families lost three family members and you know, absolutely horrific. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges against him.įollowing the judge’s ruling, a person in the gallery charged towards Biles-Thomas but was stopped by sheriff’s deputies, Toms said, adding that “the Court thanks the Sheriff’s Department for their assistance.” That fight led to the shooting and multiple people were hit – two of whom died at the scene and a third who later died at a hospital.Ĭleveland police had identified Biles-Thomas as the shooter. On the night of the shooting, a group of uninvited guests walked into a home and a fight began, Ohio authorities previously said. Tevin Biles-Thomas Liberty County Sheriffīrother of Olympic gymnast Simone Biles pleads not guilty in Cleveland triple slaying
0 kommentar(er)
