To The Lady At The Gym Who Ruined My Day…
I hope we never meet again.
Let me start by saying, this might sound strange, or maybe not surprising to some, but my race hasn’t always been something I paid attention to. For a good part of my life, I only took note of my whiteness when I was around people of color.
Recently, I really felt my white skin at the gym. It was during a weight lifting class. Less than two minutes into our first set, I realized that the weight I’d chosen was too heavy.
As I made my way over to swap out my ambitious choice, I found a black woman standing in front of the weight rack. I waited a few seconds, hoping she’d see that I needed to get to the equipment. There was no other way to reach it unless she moved. When she looked at me, I motioned to the weights behind her.
She didn’t move. Just as I began to say, “Excuse me,” she interjected, “Can I just work out please?” She said more about me being in her space making it clear that she was displeased by my presence. Given the tone and volume with which she spoke, everyone around us knew it too. Suddenly, the moment didn’t just involve the two of us — other folks were watching to see what would happen next.
At that point, I froze. I didn’t express my need for her to step aside for a second or two. I also didn’t immediately exit her space and…
