Running While Black

Alison Mariella Désir

eAudio - 2022

A searing exposé on the whiteness of running, a supposedly egalitarian sport, and a call to reimagine the industry“Runners know that running brings us to ourselves. But for Black people, the simple act of running has never been so simple. It is a declaration of the right to move through the world. If running is claiming public space, why, then, does it feel like a negotiation?” Running saved Alison Désir’s life. At rock bottom and searching for meaning and structure, Désir started marathon training, finding that it vastly improved both her physical and mental health. Yet as she became involved in the community and learned its history, she realized that the sport was largely built with white people in mind. Running While Black d...raws on Désir’s experience as an endurance athlete, activist, and mental health advocate to explore why the seemingly simple,... more