Watching Simone Biles fly through the air, shooting up higher than what seems probable, it’s possible to imagine her as more, as beyond merely human.
When it comes to her athleticism, maybe that’s true. She’s extraordinary and we’re lucky to watch her push a sport far past its settled boundaries.
But.
Simone Biles is a person. An ordinary person who can do extraordinary things. And her talent belongs to no one but herself.
She doesn’t owe it to “her country” to risk her life for our entertainment. This is her journey, and to watch people–largely middle-aged white men–castigate her for denying them the opportunity to gleefully anticipate her failure is nauseating.
Frankly I think they were hoping to see her gravely injure herself. Hoping to quell that jolt of inferiority they feel watching her.
Hoping to say “See, she’s not so special. She’s not infallible,” as though “infallible” is the mere minimum she can do to be “worthy.”
As if “infallible” is the mere minimum she can do to be worthy.
But of course she’s fallible. She’s a person. A mere mortal with so much talent, so much dedication, so much drive it’s easy, for a moment, to believe she’s more that that.
But she doesn’t need to be more than that. No one does.
Have a great Wednesday.
A Bit to Read 