The Simone Biles hate train is moving full steam ahead on social media. Critics are outraged by resurfaced claims suggesting the world-class gymnast is among the five million Americans who benefitted from student loan forgiveness.
The Ohio native purportedly took a selection of business classes when she attended the University of the People online-only school six years ago. Outcry from people on X began when a tweet that stated, “Roseanne Barr ‘goes mad’ as Simone Biles, worth $14 million, but still took $44K in student loan forgiveness: ‘Why are we giving taxpayer funds to millionaires?’” was circulated.
The made-up claim — including the quote from Barr, apparently — first appeared online in August on a small gossip website called USA Enquire. The claims quickly spread across social media, resurfacing multiple times over the following months. Almost immediately, social media replies were loaded with racist undertones as one person asked, “It is because the only people who got there [sic] loans forgiven were black/brown students??”
According to an October update from President Joe Biden’s administration, a staggering $4.5 billion in student loan debt for public service workers had been canceled in the past four years. Millions benefitted from $10,000 to $20,000 worth of loan forgiveness thanks to the relief plan.
Another user eagerly tweeted the Biles received loan relief “because she is black, and yet they still claim racism!” A like-minded individual commented that “Simone’s ‘privilege’ on full display.”
But the backlash was hardly rooted in fact. For starters, an August USA Today report estimated that Team USA’s women’s gymnastics star is worth an estimated $20 million. Secondly, there are no valid reports that her short-lived collegiate career resulted in any unpaid debts.
Y’all was pretty quiet when Brett Farve …….. nvm ima sit this one out https://t.co/H05ULm4h7I
— Himmy Neutron (@BuckYoTweet) December 17, 2024
“I always dreamed of going to college but decided to follow my gymnastics dreams full time, which didn’t make it possible for me. I had planned to attend UCLA but had to defer because of my training schedule,” said the Bruins recruit.
In a 2018 Instagram post, Biles revealed her alignment with the online tuition-free university instead. “I became a University of the People Global Ambassador because I believe in the power of hard work; that dedication and desire, no matter your starting point, can make the impossible, possible,” Biles wrote in a February 2018 post.
While her status as a student is unclear, the institution’s support for her is well documented
—such as their congratulatory posts when she racked up medals at the Paris Summer Olympics.
According to its website, Uof People “doesn’t charge students to enroll, to pay for books or other course materials, or for campus fees” and a Bachelors degree can be completed in four years for a cost as low as $5,660.
Also noted online, the university does not receive “Title IV funds and does not participate in federal or state financial aid programs,” but does partner with corporations to provide grants and scholarships to students who need financial assistance.
As social media trolls expressed vitriol for the loan forgiveness system and misinformation about Biles, several of her fans made it their business to hit back at critics. “She never went college, fake news and Simone would not do that I’m sure, she’s is an honest young lady,” one person wrote.
The fact that Jameis Winston stealing $32.72 worth of crab legs while in college got 100xs more media coverage than Brett Farve embezzling 5 million dollars from a welfare fund should tell you all you need to know pic.twitter.com/eGtraNyXmt
— Etan Thomas (@etanthomas36) September 21, 2022
Someone else who came to her defense wrote, “First doubt the story is true as I m sure she was on a full scholarship and 2nd she would not have qualified for student loan forgiveness given her yearly income.”
Elsewhere in the online discourse, another athlete-money controversy was used as retaliation to the outcry. That person wrote, “Y’all was pretty quiet when Brett Farve …….. nvm ima sit this one out.”
Retired Green Bay Packers star quarterback Brett Favre was exposed in 2022 for accepting $1.1 million of misappropriated welfare funds from the state of Mississippi. The 2020 payments were allegedly part of a larger scheme to secure money for a new volleyball arena at his alma mater, the University of Southern Mississippi.
Favre never showed up for any speaking engagements for which he was paid, and texts revealed he knew about the ploy. He has been ordered to pay back the money as well as $729,790 in interest, which was detailed in a court filing submitted by state auditor Shad White. In September, the Hall of Famer testified before Congress about the misused funds.
Back in October, Biles seemingly responded to the resurfaced rumors with an X post that read, “Y’all really need to stop believing everything you read on the internet.”
