First of all, I don't even know if I'm allowed to post this on here, so if not, feel free to delete it. But:
Gym denies Gabrielle Douglas's racism claims - Yahoo! TV
I personally find this sickening. I watched the interview with Oprah, and she was in no way blaming the gym, or the coaches. She said that she felt excluded by the other girls, and she thought racism was probably a part of that. Who are they to call her a liar for saying this? I find it appalling that they think they can say that because she has provided no names or dates, she is lying. She would have gotten slammed even more if she had revealed names, and how is she supposed to remember exact dates? Also, how do they think they know what happened to her? They can't keep track of everything that is said between the gymnasts. How does Randy know she was never a victim? It's not like she followed her around the gym and was with her every waking moment...
And even if the comments made to her were not intended to be mean or bullying, she perceived it that way, and they can't call her a liar for speaking her feelings. If she felt bullied, hurt, or scared, that is what matters, not what they think she should have felt.
As for the part about her never complaining about bullying, I don't think they realize how hard it is for kids to speak up about these things. Look what's happened after she's just spoken out about it now. It sometimes seems easier to just stay silent, so I think she is very brave for speaking out about her experiences.
Finally, I think the gym has handled this completely wrong and childishly. Even if I did think she was lying, their reaction would be enough to steer me away from them. They should have apologized that she felt this way, wished her the best, and moved on. They say she is giving the gym a bad reputation, when, in fact, it is them who are doing it to themselves. I think the only reason they are surrounding it with so much drama is that they are upset and jealous that she moved away and they didn't get all the fame. Many, many gymnasts switch gyms all the time. It's just that this one happened to become an Olympic champion.
Gym denies Gabrielle Douglas's racism claims - Yahoo! TV
I personally find this sickening. I watched the interview with Oprah, and she was in no way blaming the gym, or the coaches. She said that she felt excluded by the other girls, and she thought racism was probably a part of that. Who are they to call her a liar for saying this? I find it appalling that they think they can say that because she has provided no names or dates, she is lying. She would have gotten slammed even more if she had revealed names, and how is she supposed to remember exact dates? Also, how do they think they know what happened to her? They can't keep track of everything that is said between the gymnasts. How does Randy know she was never a victim? It's not like she followed her around the gym and was with her every waking moment...
And even if the comments made to her were not intended to be mean or bullying, she perceived it that way, and they can't call her a liar for speaking her feelings. If she felt bullied, hurt, or scared, that is what matters, not what they think she should have felt.
As for the part about her never complaining about bullying, I don't think they realize how hard it is for kids to speak up about these things. Look what's happened after she's just spoken out about it now. It sometimes seems easier to just stay silent, so I think she is very brave for speaking out about her experiences.
Finally, I think the gym has handled this completely wrong and childishly. Even if I did think she was lying, their reaction would be enough to steer me away from them. They should have apologized that she felt this way, wished her the best, and moved on. They say she is giving the gym a bad reputation, when, in fact, it is them who are doing it to themselves. I think the only reason they are surrounding it with so much drama is that they are upset and jealous that she moved away and they didn't get all the fame. Many, many gymnasts switch gyms all the time. It's just that this one happened to become an Olympic champion.