Hi, John—
As of just a few moments ago, more than 390,000 MoveOn members had signed on to demand that the USADA remove world-class runner Sha'Carri Richardson's suspension and that the IOC and USADA revisit the outdated rules around marijuana and athletes. Will you sign the petition?
Elite Black women Olympic athletes undergo exceptional levels of scrutiny, from Simone Biles' recent record-breaking double pike vault which received artificially suppressed scores despite its difficulty1 to Christine Mboma and Beatrice Masilingi, two Namibian runners who won't be permitted to run in their main events because of their naturally high testosterone levels.2 And just two days ago, we learned the Olympics decided to ban swim caps designed for the hair of Black swimmers, a blatant move to target Black athletes.3
In Sha'Carri Richardson's case, the imposition of a penalty against her is a reminder of the racist application of the patchwork of legalization laws in the United States. Black people are criminalized, while white people profit off the burgeoning cannabis industry.
Even International Olympic Committee member and a founder of the World Anti-Doping Agency Dick Pound thinks this marijuana ban needs to go, saying, "One of these days, we should probably either take it off the list entirely or say it’s there but the minimum sanction should be something like a warning, so you’re not losing any period of eligibility."4 So why is it being enforced now?
So many incredible celebrities and influencers are helping to get the word out to build massive support for Sha'Carri, like "Love & Hip Hop" host Claudia Jordan, actor Rosanna Arquette, and Olympic medalist Dominique Blake.
–Isbah
Sign the petition: Let Sha'Carri run!
Dear MoveOn member,
Sha’Carri Richardson is one of the fastest athletes in the world—and would have a real chance of winning the 100-meter sprint in the Summer Olympics this month for the United States.
However, due to an outdated and arbitrarily enforced rule around marijuana, she's now going to be kept from competing on the world stage.
In no world is marijuana a performance-enhancing drug for runners, and in more places in the United States and around the world, marijuana use is legal. The United States Anti-Doping Agency should drop their penalty and allow Richardson to compete!
There are many reasons to have rules against performance-enhancing drugs, but this one is absurd.
The imposition of a penalty against a world-class Black, queer, woman athlete is powerfully and infuriatingly reminiscent of the way drug laws are regularly applied in the United States. Recreational marijuana use has been de facto legal for upper-middle-class white people for years—something more states are recognizing as they legalize marijuana for all people and consider how to repair the damage done to Black and brown communities by decades of the "war on drugs."
The world is coming together for a Summer Olympics postponed by a global pandemic. and we deserve to see the best athletes in fair, open competition. That includes Sha'Carri Richardson, whose one-month penalty is excessively punitive for an irrational, outdated rule.
Let Sha'Carri run!
Thanks!
–Isbah, Justin, David, Mohammad, and the rest of the team
Sources:
1. "Simone Biles Dials Up the Difficulty, 'Because I Can'," The New York Times, May 24, 2021
https://act.moveon.org/go/154456?t=12&akid=301134%2E40999114%2E7UuD_K
2. "Tokyo 2020: Two Namibian Olympic medal contenders ruled ineligible for women's 400m due to naturally high testosterone levels," CNN, July 3, 2021
https://act.moveon.org/go/154457?t=14&akid=301134%2E40999114%2E7UuD_K
3. "The Olympics Ban On Afro Swim Caps Is Targeting Black Athletes," Refinery29, July 2, 2021
https://act.moveon.org/go/154458?t=16&akid=301134%2E40999114%2E7UuD_K
4. "The doping rules that cost Sha’Carri Richardson have a debated, political history," The Washington Post, July 3, 2021
https://act.moveon.org/go/154459?t=18&akid=301134%2E40999114%2E7UuD_K
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