SAGE responds to commentary about new gym initiative
The student assembly said that men won’t be excluded from the inclusive spaces.
By APRIL MAO
The Student Assembly for Gender Empowerment released a statement Thursday clarifying the assembly’s inclusive gym initiative after a California Post article Wednesday reported that “men will be barred from using parts of an on-campus gym” due to the initiative.
The program does not exclude men from parts of the gym; instead, it reserves a room at the Lyon Center for one hour two days a week to women and non-binary students, according to SAGE’s announcement of the initiative last week.
“Inclusion is a foundational value of this initiative. All students are welcome, and no person will be denied access based on any protected class,” the statement posted on SAGE’s Instagram read. “We believe that every student deserves to feel comfortable and confident in fitness spaces, and we are proud to play a part in cultivating that environment at USC.”
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The statement read that the initiative intends to create a welcoming space for all students who feel the gym is not accessible to them, including but not limited to women and nonbinary people.
SAGE’s program reserves the Robinson Room, which has been described as more of a yoga space than a full gym floor, from 10 to 11 a.m. on Mondays and Wednesdays. Jana Alnajjar, SAGE’s advocacy liaison and a sophomore majoring in philosophy, politics and law, previously told the Daily Trojan that she created the idea after hearing from multiple women and non-binary students that they felt uncomfortable exercising in the main areas of the gym.
In a statement to the California Post, USC stated that the gym initiative was consistent with University policy as it was open to all students. A University spokesperson told Fox News, which made similar claims as the Post in a Thursday article, that “no one is excluded” from the spaces, and that other recognized student organizations can reserve spaces in the gym. Fox updated its headline and story after speaking with the spokesperson.
The pilot program will continue through mid-May, with organizers, like Alnajjar, hoping that high student participation will allow the program to expand in the future.
