Time magazine mocked after woke historian claims exercise is racist – Toronto Sun

Time magazine was relentlessly mocked after it published a piece claiming exercise is racist and part of a white supremacy plot.

“The White Supremacist Origins of Exercise” asks: “How did U.S. exercise trends go from reinforcing white supremacy to celebrating Richard Simmons?”

The article features an interview with progressive private school teacher Natalia Mehlman Petrzela, who claims the pastime began in the early 1900s by white Americans eager to strengthen their race amid the abolition of slavery and increasing immigration.

Petrzela was disappointed to discover while researching her upcoming book, Fit Nation: The Gains and Pains of America’s Exercise Obsession, that fitness enthusiasts in the early 20th century who wanted to get rid of corsets because it is an assault on women’s form, weren’t as progressive as they seemed.

“They’re saying white women should start building up their strength because we need more white babies,” she says in the Time interview.

“They’re writing during an incredible amount of immigration, soon after enslaved people have been emancipated,” Petrzela continued. “This is totally part of a white supremacy project.”

Petrzela also spoke about the history of other popular workouts including running – described as “a great equalizer” because it’s something anyone can do and hardly any gear is required.

“It’s important to point out that access was never totally equal, if you lived in a neighborhood that didn’t have safe streets or streets that were not well lit,” she clarified. “Women were catcalled. People of colour were thought to be committing a crime.”

She added: “The ‘running is for everybody’ discourse still quite often leaves out the fact that depending on where you live and the body that you live in, it can be a very different kind of experience.”

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Many took to Twitter to mock the article and the publication for running the “ridiculous” piece.

“This headline is so ridiculous yet its intention to promote division and hate is promoted by Time,” one person wrote.

A second person commented, “Wow. There is nothing at your company that even reminds me of legitimate news anymore,” adding sarcastically, “Running is definitely racist. That’s why the best sprinters and distance runners are consistently black.”

Another pondered, “I worked out at the gym today next to some African-American guys who were hittin the weights pretty hard. Who knew they were actually practicing White-Supremacy??”

One person offered up his own advice: “The only way to fight against the white supremacy roots of exercise is by leading a sedentary life. Say no to exercise as a means of being an ally to people of color.”