The feud between Simone Biles and Riley Gaines over the transgender issue took a turn for the better with Biles issuing an apology: a well crafted created-by-a-PR-team-and-maybe-a-lawyer-or-two apology.
It's a long one. Here's the text in full.
to get personal with Riley, which I apologize for. These are sensitive, complicated issues that I truly don’t have the answers or solutions to, but I believe it starts with empathy and respect.
I was not advocating for policies that compromise fairness in women’s sports. My objection is to be singling out children for public scrutiny in ways that feel personal and harmful. Individual athletes—especially kids—should never be the focus of criticism of a flawed system they have no control over. I believe sports organizations have a responsibility to come up with rules supporting inclusion while maintaining fair competition. We all want a future for sport that is fair, inclusive, and respectful.
Xoxo Simone
Honestly, putting the workshopped apology construction aside, it is good for the heart to see this conciliatory gesture. The Social Media era could use a whole lot more of this.
That said, some were skeptical of the sincerity.
Ah, there it is, the missing ingredient.
'ChatGPT, write an apology that both appeases the woke and doesn't actually apologize. Make sure there it doesn't expose me to legal consequences.'
The moment when buzzwords collide with reality. It's never a pretty sight.
In this culture, celebrities are expected to support the Narrative regardless of whether they believe it or not. Sadly, the particular incident that provoked Biles' outrage appears to be a classic case of Transhausen-by-Proxy and basically a made-for-TV incident.
Continued.
take some time to reflect on how you contribute to false narratives and harm to young female athletes.
This variety of attention whore is bad - even worse than the Kardashians.
... less sincere.
... know your positions on this. Your opinions. Not your PR firm's.
This is the crux of it. Biological males should not compete against women.
The rest of Gaines' post.
... play sports. Competition, on the other hand and by definition, is exclusive. So the idea of "competitive equity" is nonsensical. Secondly, the boys are publicly humiliating the girls. To suggest that women and girls must be silent or ignore a boy who is PUBLICLY hurting or humiliating them is wrong. You can't have any empathy and compassion for the girls if you're ignoring when young men are harming or abusing them. I am not ashamed to be a voice for the voiceless. Lastly, I agree with you that the blame is on the lawmakers and leaders at the top. Precisely why I'm suing the NCAA and support candidates who vow to stand with women. That's why I joined
at the signing of his Executive Order. I didn't see you there or championing this effort with your platform. Women's sports can't be used as an excuse for girl's to center the feelings and validation of men and boys. I welcome you to the fight to support fair sports and a future for female athletes. Little girls deserve the same shot to achieve that you had.
We hope that this is the end of the feud and hopefully the end of the debate over whether biological males should compete in women's sports.