Riley Gaines, a 12-time All-American swimmer who has been defending women’s sports from gender activists, called out Nike for signing a lucrative deal with transgender activist and social media influencer Dylan Mulvaney.
Mulvaney is a man who identifies as a transgender woman and is very vocal about it online. Across TikTok and Instagram, Mulvaney has more than 12 million followers.
Anheuser-Busch is currently feeling the wrath of longtime customers who are pouring the drink out in droves after it printed Muvaney’s face on a can of Bud Light.
Mulvaney shared an image of his face on a can of one of the company’s beers on Instagram as part of a partnership with the company for March Madness.
Mulvaney said the company wanted to help him celebrate a full year of “womanhood.”
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According to the U.K. Daily Mail, Gaines shared her thoughts after Nike recently inked a deal with Mulvaney to pay him up to $150,000 per post online to promote its women’s sports line.
Mulvaney spent part of Wednesday showing off Nike gear on Instagram.
He commented, “Home for a moment and leaning into cozy workout wear life with @nikewomen ‘s newest Zenvy leggings and Alate bra! They’re so comfortable and buttery soft, perfect for workouts and everyday wear!”
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Gaines told the Mail the athletic wear company is diminishing actual women by choosing to use Mulvaney as the face of a line of clothing.
“Nike joins the growing list of companies who find it acceptable [to] disrespect women by making a sad mockery of what being a woman entails,” Gaines said.
Gaines added, “The message Nike sends to all girls and women is that men can do everything better.”
The former University of Kentucky swimmer said she will buy her competitive gear from the company Athleta in the future.
Gaines also challenged the notion that radical gender activism and other causes that the modern American left has chosen to champion are “progressive.”
“Progressive” indicates positively moving in the forward direction.
The erasure we’re seeing of women in the guise of progress is actually the contrary. Allowing anyone to claim they are a woman takes us back at least 50 years in time.
— Riley Gaines (@Riley_Gaines_) April 6, 2023
“‘Progressive’ indicates positively moving in the forward direction,” she tweeted on Thursday after her comments to the Mail were publicized.
Gaines added, “The erasure we’re seeing of women in the guise of progress is actually the contrary. Allowing anyone to claim they are a woman takes us back at least 50 years in time.”
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.