Peloton Instructor Alex Toussaint on the Realities of Racism
Peloton Instructor Alex Toussaint on Racism: "My Life Is More Than a F*cking Hashtag"
Senior Peloton Instructor Alex Toussaint spoke up about his daily struggles with racism in a passionate and heartbreaking video shared to his Instagram account on Wednesday. The fitness instructor is well-known in the Peloton community as someone who inspires wellness and motivation in thousands of viewers, but the realities of his life as a Black man behind the camera are worthy of much more attention. "My people are dying. Black individuals like myself, young Black men, kings and queens, are not making it home safely," Toussaint said just days after George Floyd was killed by a police officer in Minneapolis on May 25. "They get killed in broad daylight on camera. This has got to stop, man."
Toussaint went on to point out that sometimes his biggest milestones in the day are waking up and making it back home safely, because these small accomplishments are not a guarantee for Black people. "Some of y'all think this racism sh*t isn't even real. Listen, if I'm in your home, if you're rocking with me, racism is real," he said. "Racism is in your life. I'm in your life . . . I'm not exempt from this 'cause I work at Peloton where I got cameras in my face when y'all show love."
Despite the love he gets from his followers during training sessions on screen, life off-camera is much more difficult to handle. "I'm a grown-ass man. I text my mom every single night to let her know I'm alive," Toussaint explained. "My life is not a trend; our lives are not trends. My life is more than a f*cking hashtag . . . I'm f*cking scared, I'm tired, I'm hurt, and I'm angry . . . I'm just trying to make it another 24 hours."
The Peloton instructor encouraged his thousands of followers to take action, be informed, and actively strive to change the societal structures that make these daily struggles a reality. "I need you to really wake up," Toussaint added. "I need you to ultimately do better. I need you to teach your families, teach the people in your communities, surround yourself with individuals who do not look like you . . . Stop repeating the same sh*t. It's time to evolve."
