Get Yourself Active and Disability Rights UK have criticised Nike’s recent advertising slogan, “Runners welcome. Walkers tolerated” as ableist and exclusionary.
The groups announced on the Get Yourself Active website that while the slogan may be intended as a motivational message, it exemplifies “exactly the kind of exclusionary and ableist physical activity messaging” that is harmful to disabled people.
The report said that research with the University of Durham demonstrated that disabled adults already face significant barriers to participating in physical activity, including stigma, lack of inclusive opportunities and messaging that fails to reflect their lived realities.
It added: “Campaigns like this reinforce those barriers. By positioning runners as ‘welcome’ and walkers as merely ‘tolerated’, Nike’s message creates a clear hierarchy of movement one that implicitly devalues those who cannot run, including many disabled people.
“For some individuals, walking is not a lesser form of exercise. It may be the most accessible or achievable activity, and one that is enjoyable! For others, walking may not be possible at all. Messaging that privileges one form of movement over another not only excludes but actively alienates those whose bodies and abilities do not align with these narrow ideals.”
The groups added that the findings also showed that widely used physical activity messages often fail because they are not co-produced with disabled people.
They said: “As a result, they can feel unrelatable, unrealistic and in some cases discriminatory. Nike’s slogan is a clear example of this disconnect. Rather than encouraging participation, such messaging risks discouraging disabled people from engaging in physical activity altogether, as it signals we are not fully welcome in these spaces.
“At a time when disabled adults are almost twice as likely to be physically inactive as non-disabled adults, the need for inclusive, supportive and representative messaging has never been greater. Effective health communication should empower individuals, not marginalise us.
“We call on Nike and other organisations to work collaboratively with disabled people to co-produce physical activity campaigns that reflect the diversity of bodies, abilities and experiences. We offer to meet with Nike to explore how we can assist them in this.”