Olympic figure skater Amber Glenn is defending her decision to share her beliefs.
“When I chose to utilize one of the amazing things about the United States of America (freedom of speech) to convey how I feel as an athlete competing for Team USA in a troubling time for many Americans, I am now receiving a scary amount of hate/threats for simply using my voice when asked about how I feel,” Glenn, 26, wrote via her Instagram Stories on Saturday, February 7. “I did anticipate this, but I am disappointed by it.”
Glenn appeared with her fellow members of the Team USA figure skating team during a Wednesday, February 4, press conference, where she was asked about representing the LGBTQIA+ community in the Olympics. (Glenn identifies as pansexual.)
“It’s been a hard time for the community overall in this administration. It isn’t the first time that we’ve had to come together as a community and try and fight for our human rights,” she said at the time. “And now, especially, it’s not just affecting the queer community, but many other communities. I think that we are able to support each other in a way that we didn’t have to before, and because of that, it’s made us a lot stronger.”
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Glenn further stressed that she didn’t plan to shy away from getting political or publicly addressing her beliefs.
“I hope I can use my platform and my voice throughout these Games to try and encourage people to stay strong in these hard times,” the Olympic athlete stressed to reporters. “I know that a lot of people say, ‘You’re just an athlete, like, stick to your job, shut up about politics,’ but politics affect us all.”
She continued, “It is something that I will not just be quiet about because it is something that affects us in our everyday lives. So, of course, there are things that I disagree with, but as a community, we are strong and we support each other, and brighter days are ahead of us.”
Glenn uploaded a photo of her press conference quote to her Instagram Stories on Saturday, also revealing she planned to take a step back from social media amid the Olympics.
“I will be limiting my time on social media for my own wellbeing for now,” she concluded in her social media statement. “But, I will never stop using my voice for what I believe in. 🤍 Xoxo, Amber.”
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Glenn is the first openly LGBTQIA+ figure skater to represent Team USA in a Winter Olympics.
“The fear of not being accepted is a huge struggle for me,” Glenn, who publicly came out in 2019, told the Dallas Voice that year. “Being perceived as [going through] ‘just a phase’ or [being] ‘indecisive’ is a common thing for bisexual/pansexual women. I don’t want to shove my sexuality in people’s faces, but I also don’t want to hide who I am.”
Since coming out as queer, Glenn has ultimately felt embraced by the skating community.
“Figure skating is unique,” the pro athlete told NBC News last month. “We have more acceptance and more of a community in the queer space, and I feel like I’ve been accepted with open arms, and that’s not the case for all sports.”
