June 9,2020

Time for a change

2020 is certainly campaigning for most memorable year of my life up to this date.  As we gradually reopen our country from the COVID crisis we are immediately greeted with the public execution of a person of color at the hands of police officers.  This act deservedly so sparked worldwide protests, some of which devolved into riots, in the name of black and brown people who have suffered disproportionately for far too long. 

As an almost comical climax the CEO of CrossFit decides to tweet (and I’m being polite) an inappropriate, ill-timed, tone deaf, tweet making light of the situation.  This follows up an email response to an affiliate owner calling her “mentally ill†and “delusional†for suggesting their (CrossFit HQ’s) silence on this topic as troubling.  To see full story click here. 

It all started when I awoke up to a message from a friend of the Alpha family asking if I saw the news.  WOW what a great way to start a beautiful Sunday morning.  The sad part about reading the post was that I was not surprised by the manner in which Greg Glassman, CF CEO, spoke to that affiliate owner.  In fact I had heard rumors of such conduct many times before.  What I wasn’t prepared for was the tweet he posted a few days earlier that could at best be descried as “insensitive†or “tone deafâ€.  At this point April and I began discussing what it all meant for Alpha. 

It is safe to say that my introduction to CrossFit changed the course of my life.  It introduced me to my wife, allowed me to own a small business, it changed my relationship with health and fitness all while introducing me to some amazing people who remain close friends to this day.  The last decade of my life has been positively affected by CrossFit in an overwhelming way.  So yesterday was tough when I realized that season of my life was coming to a close. 

Inappropriate, insensitive tweets aside Greg Glassman’s behavior and apparently his views on volatile American issues needs to stop.  Treating any person, especially an owner within your affiliate network that way is unacceptable.  Making insensitive jokes about the brutal murder of an African American at the hands of the police needs to stop.  As the CEO of a multinational fitness organization you are held to a higher standard and expected to be a leader and is clear he lacks the capacity for such demands.

As leaders it’s our duty to take a stand for what is right.  We operate Alpha through a strong moral compass and it’s pointing us away from CrossFit.  Instead we’re doubling down on providing value for our Alpha family.  We’re working on expanding our reach in the local community to positively affect as many lives as we can.  We don’t need CrossFit for that we need our Alpha family. 

#unaffiliated

â€Don’t shootâ€

20 Jumping squats

20 UB Double unders

20 Hang Snatch

20 T2B

20 Inverted Pushups

20 Cals (your choice)

20 Elevated Ring Rows
-Elijah EZ Muhammad

Supporting the movement of #BlackLivesMatter