Where Do We Go From Here?

There has been a lot going on in our world the past several months.  We are in the middle of a national crisis, COVID-19 changed our world.  In the past week CrossFit has been in the middle of a firestorm.  Greg Glassman’s remarks were reprehensible and do not reflect the values that we stand for at DCL.  For the past several days I have been contemplating, “Where do we go from here?”  It is not an easy decision.  CrossFit has saved my life.  Very few know this about me but before I started CrossFit I never worked out.  I did the bare minimum to stay in the Army.  I would drink up to five cans of soda a day.  I could drink an entire 2-liter coke by myself.  I also had no direction with my life.  I had no hobbies, I ate fast food, and knew nothing about nutrition, and had no desire for any of that. I showed up to work and I went home.  My friends would go out and drink and I would go back to my small apartment and wonder where I was going. I had zero direction.  One day while deployed I found CrossFit.  It started with just workouts but it developed into much, much more.  I started reading about how the human body was supposed to move. I started reading about nutrition. I started to annoy my friends with my new knowledge.  My hobbies became working out and, for the first time in my life, reading.  I read everything I could get my hands on.  My hobbies then became traveling around the country and going to seminars to learn from some of the brightest minds in the industry.  CrossFit gave me a way.  CrossFit helped me find something I love.  CrossFit saved my life.  There are so many with similar stories.  I have worked with cancer survivors, diabetics, military athletes, recovering addicts, sexual assault survivors, and people dealing with depression.  CrossFit allowed me to work with everyone here.  I know that I am not alone in my story.  I hope and I honestly pray that CrossFit has changed your life.  

I cannot abandon CrossFit because of the actions of one man. Greg Glassman may be the founder of CrossFit but it has grown to be so much more than any one man. His recent comments do not reflect the values of our members, nor our business. He has rightfully stepped down, HQ has a new CEO.  We have a lot of work to do and it cannot be done from the outside. That is why we will remain a CrossFit affiliate. What does that mean? It means we choose to affiliate ourselves with an international community that improves physical and mental health, builds lifelong friendships, gives purpose, and changes lives. When racism is exposed, we will not back out and abandon our community- we will affirm that this is not what we stand for and own up to setting the ground rules for what will not be tolerated. Instead of allowing one man to dismantle the organization, the organization must assert it’s strength and close the door on that one man.

It is my intention that we can use DCL to exemplify the true values of a CrossFit community: inclusiveness, equity, and perseverance. It’s not enough to passively sit behind a keyboard and put out statements disavowing racism. That’s why our gym will begin reaching out to build partnerships with local organizations to actively engage in work for minority communities. We are CrossFit DCL and we will be the change- the change that we expect.