It’s inevitable. Whenever a Black woman takes the stage in gymnastics, she’s criticized. From her hair to her dance routine. But whenever they get through talking, there’s one truth that NOBODY can deny!
Today, Black women rule the previously mostly-white sport, and there’s nobody doing it better right now than Simone Biles. But Biles was preceded by another Black woman who was criticized, hated on, and cheated against in the 1980s. Who was she?
Dianne Durham. The first Black woman to compete at the national level, she dominated – consistently outperforming her white peers! White folks were infuriated, and conspired to sabotage her.
When she got hurt during the Olympic trials in 1984, the all-white committee didn’t tell her that all she needed to do was finish her routine and she would have made the team!
That decision had major implications for her career – she didn’t go to the Olympics. But her dominance of the sport did something better: she set the stage for a line of AMAZING Black women to dominate the sport, including Biles!
Durham’s positive self-image granted her the power to make her mark in a hostile, white-dominated sport, and to inspire other Black women and girls to do the same. We must remember that our Black excellence propels us forward – and can inspire the next generation, too!