We Cannot #evolvestrong Unless We Evolve Together
We cannot #evolvestrong unless we evolve together.
We are filled with sadness because the events of the past few weeks have shown us how little we have evolved as a country. We are still separated by centuries-old racial divisions.
At EVOLVE we have 5 pillars of health: movement, food, community, recovery, and prevention. We believe, and research shows, that you cannot achieve optimal health if a pillar is missing. It’s become quite clear that the pillar of community is sorely lacking on a global, national, and even local scale. As such, we cannot discuss health without talking about racism.
Here’s why. The most obvious is the shocking health inequalities; inadequate access to healthcare, food insecurity, lack of safe spaces to exercise; and implicit bias from healthcare providers themselves. The less obvious, but more insidious: The stress of generations upon generations of racial discrimination changes our physiology. It causes a cascade of physiological and biological changes that increases rates of chronic illness. People of color (POC) have higher rates of mother and infant death rates, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, more likely to suffer from certain types of cancer. In our country, simply having pigmented skin is bad for your health.
If you are reading this, you should be asking yourself, what can I do? Well, here’s a few ways to start. We do NOT claim to be experts or authorities or leaders of this movement, but instead want to humbly provide some suggestions in case you, like us, are looking for a place to get started.
1) Uncover your biases
We all have implicit biases that are a product of our upbringing, media, culture, and experiences. One of the best ways that we can actively engage in this is by leaning in to all of the things that make us uncomfortable. That could be individuals, places, and especially ideas. That leads us to our next point.
2) Learn - Resources to be a white ally
Once you have uncovered some of your biases, it is time to DO THE WORK NOW: Anti-racism resources for white people. This open-access and updated google document is an amazing place to start. It has articles, videos, books, and social media accounts to follow. Perhaps start with one book, and a few videos and articles. Note that reading something once, will not undo years and generations of bias, continue to do the work. It never stops.
3) Diversify your feeds
We are strongly affected by what we see on social media. Even if you think you’re immune to the pervasive influence of social media, you aren’t. Our feeds become our reality. So, diversify your feeds. The document (above) above gives a plenty of accounts to start with.
4) Speak up - apply what you learned
Learning doesn’t count if you don’t apply it. Don’t tolerate racism in your small world. Speak out and end the complacency. Here’s a quick guide to talking to your family about racism. Everyone is a leader to someone, and you can use your voice to influence your circle.
5) Donate
If you have money to buy expensive lululemon workout gear while some rely on second hand stores, to have the privilege to “go camping” while others are homeless, or to buy organic while others exist in food deserts, then you can probably spare a few bucks for this cause. Here’s a few national organizations, and locally you might consider.
Additionally, here is what we are at EVOLVE in addition to the above:
1) Creating a safe place for all bodies of all colors. But especially black and brown bodies.
Participating in diet culture and the white thin ideal is racism. “The body positive movement was started by fat black women and femmes fighting for the rights for everybody…”- Natasha Ngindi.
We believe that all bodies are worthy of respect and health, no matter your color, size, or shape. We are committed to the ongoing fight to dismantle diet culture ideology because no one should have to shrink your body to be recognized. Dieting and diet culture is harmful, especially to those of color because we don’t fit the “thin white ideal.” Within the realm of fitness and wellness, we see diet culture as an obvious starting point.
2) Improving accessibility with a scholarship.
Coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic, our resources are limited, but we recognize that we are still more privileged than most. We are putting together a scholarship program to provide our services to those who cannot or would not otherwise access it. We’ll release more details soon.
3) Committing to ongoing learning.
If protests quiet down in a few weeks, that does not mean that sustainable progress has been made or that this work is done. We are committed to making anti-racism and inclusion part of our ongoing continuing education, and our new employee training. We can’t undo generations of oppression with a few Instagram posts and articles.
The only way to #evolvestrong, is to evolve together.