As corporations race to get woke, an electric bicycle company is making its rubber meet the road.
Over the last few weeks, employees at white-hot home fitness company Peloton were allegedly forced to take antiracist training.
The education — inspired by critical race theory — brings with it an “Antiracism Activation Center.”
Such is accessible via the company’s internal network, Pelonet.
As relayed by The Daily Wire, the Center’s a place where workers can discover allies’ antiracism strategy, ways to accomplish systemic change, “global perspectives” on racism, and methods of sparking race-related conversations at home.
Per TDW, one program — Anti-Racist Language — lets faculty know which terms are rather off-limits.
As it turns out, common words or phrases may have white supremacist roots.
Three examples:
- blacklisting
- whitehat or blackhat
- grandfathered in
CNN’s on board.
From an article by the outlet last July:
Blacklist/whitelist: In tech, a blacklist refers to a directory of specific elements, such as email addresses, IP addresses or URLs, that are blocked. A whitelist, by contrast, is made up of elements that are allowed.
Though the origins of those terms don’t appear to be directly connected to race, some argue that they reinforce notions that black=bad and white=good.
Google’s Chromium, an open-source browser project, and Android’s open-source project have both encouraged developers to use “blocklist” and “allowlist” instead.
And here’s one for all you grandfathers:
Grandfathered in: This legal term broadly refers to the “grandfather clause” adopted by seven Southern states during the Reconstruction Era.
Under it, anyone who was able to vote before 1867 was exempt from the literacy tests, property requirements and poll taxes needed for voting. But enslaved Black people were not freed until 1865, when the 13th Amendment passed, and weren’t granted the right to vote until the 15th Amendment was passed in 1870.
The grandfather clause effectively excluded them from voting — a practice that continued until the 1960s, according to Encyclopedia Britannica.
Now, “grandfathered in” means that a person or company are exempt from following new laws, but “grandfather clause” in its original context disenfranchised Black Americans for decades.
Peloton’s no stranger to cultural improvement.
As covered by RedState’s Brandon Morse in September, the company celebrated Latin culture — utilizing the term “Latinx.”
If you’re not familiar, the word seeks to de-gender Spanish, which critics consider absurd since gender is central to the language.
Naysayers point out “Latinx” appears a popular term among non-Spanish-speaking liberals yet remains largely absent in the actual Hispanic lexicon.
Nonetheless, Peloton praised the Latin people via email:
“We’re proud to celebrate Latinx heritage, and the strong voices within the vibrant community. This exciting month honors the influence and strength of Latin American and Hispanic cultures. The celebration starts September 15 with live and on-demand classes featuring music by Latinx artists from around the world.”
Brandon queried thusly:
Hey @onepeloton, even Latino peoples don't use the term "latinx" by an overwhelming margin. What are you actually celebrating here? pic.twitter.com/AXS9pzhTpl
— Brandon Morse (@TheBrandonMorse) September 14, 2020
Perhaps Peloton’s trying to take Latina and Latino…and blacklist ’em.
Either way, the wheels of progress — like those on a bike — keep on turnin’.
Hence, in January, the company hosted How to Be an Antiracist author Ibram X. Kendi.
Generally, as noted by the Wire, Peloton’s trying to correct Caucasians:
Peloton has a history of promoting political and cultural issues such as LGBT issues and Black Lives Matter. The fitness company offers a series of “Pride” classes each year in celebration of the LGBT Pride parade and instructors have frequently promoted its user-created #BlackLivesMatter group.
The company also offers resources for white employees to become “white allies.” Employees were told that if they purchase books they should “purchase books directly from authors or local bookstores, especially those owned by Black people, Indigenous people, or people of color (BIPOC).”
For Black History Month, Peloton Makes an Artistic—and Antiracist—Statement https://t.co/ANlyoEZPET pic.twitter.com/EdMPvXVC4L
— The Root (@TheRoot) February 1, 2021
The company’s making strides.
Of course, they can’t all be successful ones:
Peloton exercise bike ad mocked as being 'sexist' and 'dystopian': A Christmas ad for the exercise bike firm has been mocked on social media as being "out of touch". https://t.co/1y1XoANLFk pic.twitter.com/7jrbFOSQ4B
— PMA Accountants (@PMA_Accountants) December 4, 2019
Hopefully, America will reach a point where racial unity is what we’re pedaling toward.
‘Til then, it seems, antiracism is a rigid exercise all its own.
-ALEX
See more pieces from me:
Colossal Cancellation: Causes Collide, and the Left Levels One of Its Own
Florida Sheriff Warns New Left-Wing Residents Not to ‘Vote the Stupid Way You Did up North’
Find all my RedState work here.
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