427: Black Lives Matter with Alexis Brown

WATCH HERE Club Gym Nerd members can watch the podcast being recorded (pre-edits with all the flubs and hiccups) and see video of the routines we discuss. THIS WEEK'S INTERVIEW Alexis Brown was a UC Davis gymnast, is the co-program record holder on beam, and knelt during the national anthem in the 2017 and 2018 NCAA seasons. We caught up with Alexis to hear her thoughts on kneeling now—two years on—and how she feels about the current protests against police brutality of black Americans. She tells us whether she feels more hopeful or disheartened about the experience in retrospect, what she makes of the NCAA programs who haven't made statements, and what she would like to see from white members of the gymnastics community. Resources For Action: https://medium.com/equality-includes-you/what-white-people-can-do-for-racial-justice-f2d18b0e0234 https://blacklivesmatters.carrd.co https://www.benjerry.com/about-us/media-center/dismantle-white-supremacy https://www.obama.org/wp-content/uploads/Toolkit.pdf https://www.obama.org/anguish-and-action/ GYMTERNET NEWS We round up the reactions (and occasionally lack thereof) to the protests from those in the gymnastics community, including Kennedy Baker, Tia Kiaku, and Steve Butcher. Plus, what we can do in the gymnastics community, obliviousness and defensiveness, reasons there might be silence, compassion fatigue, and how there's no better time to get rid of IOC's Rule 50 against demonstrations. JOIN CLUB GYM NERD Join Club Gym Nerd for access to Behind the Scenes episodes. We have masks too! RELATED EPISODES 426: Body Roll Abomination 425: GymCastic Fixes Judging (Commission) 424 Emotional Abuse: The Maggie Haney Eight Year Ban Behind the Scenes: Gymnast Nicknames with Scott Bregman Behind The Scenes with coach Denis Vachon Behind the Scenes: May 15, 2020 Behind The Scenes: Exactly What is Going on With Gymnast's Special Underwear? Video Podcasts