Justice

This Tweet Perfectly Summarizes the Problem With Talking About Serena Williams's Body

July 13th 2015

Many were displeased with a recent New York Times article focusing on female tennis players' body image issues, with a focus on Wimbledon winner Serena Williams. Though the piece does not mock Williams, some felt uncomfortable by the language used to describe the athlete's body.

"[Williams] has large biceps and a mold-breaking muscular frame, which packs the power and athleticism that have dominated women’s tennis for years," Ben Rothernberg wrote for The Times. "Her rivals could try to emulate her physique, but most of them choose not to."

Anchor Julie DiCaro had the most powerful response to the Williams story, pointing out that no one else seems to be highlighting the appearances of male tennis champions in print:

Another powerful comment came from the legendary J.K. Rowling, who loves to be on the right side of social justice issues:

At the 2015 Champions Dinner, Williams and fellow Wimbledon winner Novak Djokovic danced to Bee Gees' 'Night Fever':

Williams has had 20 big victories since 1999 and is considered one of the greatest athletes of all time. She told The Times that she's happy with her figure but avoids weight-lifting to put on more muscle.

“I don’t touch a weight, because I’m already super fit and super cut, and if I even look at weights, I get bigger,” she told the publication. “For years I’ve only done Thera-Bands and things like that, because that’s kind of how I felt. But then I realized that you really have to learn to accept who you are and love who you are. I’m really happy with my body type, and I’m really proud of it. Obviously it works out for me. I talk about it all the time, how it was uncomfortable for someone like me to be in my body.”

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