Simone Biles, one of the greatest gymnasts of all time, recently hit back at Donald Trump on social media with a bold statement: “I love my black job.”
This was in response to remarks made by the former president during a speech at the National Association of Black Journalists convention in Chicago on July 31.
Simone Bile’s Clap Back
Fresh off her second gold medal win at the Paris Olympics, U.S. gymnast Simone Biles appeared to throw shade at Donald Trump with her social media post. The former president and current Republican candidate has faced criticism—and a slew of internet memes—for claiming without evidence during the June 27 debate that immigrants coming into the United States illegally are “taking Black jobs.”
During the Chicago event, Trump remarked, “Millions and millions of people are coming across the border taking Black jobs. You have the best.” When a moderator asked Trump to clarify what he meant by “Black jobs,” he replied, “Sir, a Black job is any job that someone has. That’s what it is. Any job that someone has.”
Biles’s apparent response on Friday came after Ricky Davila, a singer and songwriter, posted: “Simone Biles being the GOAT, winning gold medals and dominating gymnastics is her Black job.”
I love my black job 🖤 https://t.co/c5wPc6xOY3
— Simone Biles (@Simone_Biles) August 2, 2024
Biles clinched the gold medal in the ‘All-Around’ at the Paris 2024 Games, eight years after her triumph at Rio 2016. This achievement places her alongside gymnastics legends Larysa Latynina and Vera Caslavska as one of only three gymnasts to win two Olympic titles. Biles now has a total of two golds in Paris and aims for three more.
She scored 59.131 points, with a 1.199-point lead over Brazilian Rebeca Andrade (57.932), who was again the Olympic runner-up, as she was in Tokyo 2020. The bronze went to fellow American Sunisa Lee, Tokyo’s champion, with 54.465 points.
Read also: Simone Biles Defends Husband Jonathan Owens Against Online Criticism
Biles is the third gymnast in history to win a second all-around title, joining Soviet Larysa Latynina (1956 and 1960) and Czechoslovak Vera Caslavska (1964 and 1968). However, she is the first to achieve this in non-consecutive Games (2016 and 2024). Notably, she had to withdraw from the Tokyo 2020 competition midway due to a mental health crisis.
What Did Trump Say About “Black Jobs”?
Trump’s comments in Chicago about “Black jobs” were made in the context of discussing migration at the U.S. border and its associated crime rates. He claimed, “They’re coming in, they’re invading, it’s an invasion of millions of people, probably 15, 16, 17 million people. I have a feeling it’s much more than that, and everyone has seen what’s happened. The Black population is the most affected by this, and Kamala is allowing it to happen.”
He added, “These people are coming into our country and taking Black jobs and Hispanic jobs and, frankly, union jobs.”
