June 4, 2020

Hello Friends,

The most important relationships the PMA has is with our members and the Pilates community at large. This week we failed to honor those relationships. We caused anger, frustration and distrust, and for that we sincerely apologize.

More specifically, we made grave mistakes on Instagram and we would like to take responsibility and renew our commitments for future.

First, we deleted a comment we made on our own post which caused all replies to that comment to also be deleted. This was an unintentional consequence which we wish we could undo. We apologize profusely to all people whose comments were deleted on our account. Going forward, the PMA will never delete any post or comment made by us, nor will we delete any comments or replies made by others on our content.

Second, we missed out on the opportunity to support Black Out Tuesday and the greater Black Lives Matter movement with our comment posted on Tuesday (which was deleted) and by posting a black tile on Wednesday. As many of you have pointed out, it was a day late and a dollar short. We solemnly apologize for not better representing the PMA and greater Pilates community on these matters.

Thirdly, we acknowledge the length of time it has taken us to respond to the public’s outcry is unacceptable, and in the future we will do better.

In order to do better and be better, we are in the process of defining compassionate and effective actions that will move the industry forward and create opportunities for constructive discussion.

To that end, we pledge to you the following:

• The PMA Board and staff will complete anti-racism training immediately.
• We commit to actively encouraging more participation at all levels of the PMA from the diverse population that makes up our industry. This includes continuing to maintain a diverse staff. This also includes actively recruiting BIPOC for the Board of Directors and committees. Lastly, this includes consistently taking actions that demonstrate our value for people of color and our desire to invite them into our community and to ensure that their experience is one of inclusiveness, belonging, and value for their contributions.
• We will create the PMA’s first Diversity Committee designed to develop our awareness and inclusiveness.
• We will undertake social media training that better reflects our mission to serve, respect and communicate clearly with all of our members.
• Going forward, we will ensure that the imagery we use better reflects our diverse community.

We give thanks for the diverse and vocal community that we have. Your commitment to right the wrongs that you see and your passionate voices to create change for all is something that we value. You are not just a movement community; you are forces for real change.

We stand with you, and we pledge to do better to support you to affect the changes we all seek.

In service,

The PMA Board of Directors