Jillian Michaels has gone viral over her comments about slavery and white people. During a CNN NewsNight panel on August 13, the personal trainer and Biggest Loser coach suggested that the Smithsonian Institution blames white people for everything. According to Jillian, “you cannot tie imperialism and racism and slavery to just one race.”
The shocking comments came amid concerns about President Donald Trump’s attempts to revise history. On Tuesday, the Trump administration reportedly sent a letter to the Smithsonian Institution, per NPR. In the letter, the Trump administration called for a “comprehensive internal review” of Smithsonian exhibits, aiming to “celebrate American exceptionalism, remove divisive or partisan narratives, and restore confidence in our shared cultural institutions.”
During the CNN panel, Jillian argued that the Trump administration is not rewriting or whitewashing history. “Have you looked at some of the things in there?” Jillian asked Democratic strategist Julie Roginsky, referring to the Smithsonian exhibits. “Yeah,” Julie responded. “Yes, slavery was a bad thing we should talk about.”
But Jillian then fought back by saying, “[Trump’s] not whitewashing slavery.” Clearly skeptical, Julie responded, “He’s not?”
“You cannot tie imperialism and racism and slavery to just one race, which is pretty much what every single exhibit does,” Jillian said. When other panelists attempted to respond to this, she added, “Do you realize that only less than 2% of white Americans owned slaves?”
Michaels: You cannot tie imperialism and racism and slavery to just one race, which is pretty much what every single exhibit does… Only less than 2% of white Americans own slaves. You realize that slavery is thousands of years old?
— Acyn (@Acyn) August 14, 2025
Phillip: I’m very surprised you are trying to… pic.twitter.com/KOe9rSAcTV
Rep. Ritchie Torres reminded her that “it was a system of white supremacy.” Jillian kept going: “Do you realize that slavery is thousands of years old? Do you know who was the first race to try to end slavery?”
When panelists tried to respond to these claims, Jillian kept talking. Eventually, host Abby Phillip was able to get a word in. “Jillian, I’m surprised that you’re trying to litigate who was the beneficiary of slavery,” Abby said. “In the context of American history, what are you saying is incorrect by saying that it was white people oppressing Black people?”
Attempting to explain her point, Jillian said, “Every single thing is like, ‘Oh, no, no, no, this is all because white people bad.’ That’s just not the truth.”
After seeing the clip, many people also slammed CNN for giving Jillian a platform in the first place. “Since when is a personal trainer qualified to be an expert on politics? CNN continues to sink to new lows,” one person wrote on X. A second critic said, “Jillian Michaels is a fitness trainer, not a historian. Why is she on a cable news panel being treated as a subject matter expert on the institution of slavery?!”
“Can Jillian Michaels go back to teaching people how to do push-ups?” a third person wrote.
#JillianMichaels who adopted a Black child went on national tv to minimize her child’s history. Her daughter is Haitian. The Caribbean was part of the slave trade. Sounds like she’s a MAGANut as well. I feel for her daughter. https://t.co/HysOdABwZH
— BovaryCee.bsky.social ♋️🌻🙋🏾♀️ (@BovaryCee) August 14, 2025
Some people were also concerned about how these types of viewpoints might affect Jillian’s parenting, especially because her daughter is Black. Some said this fact made Jillian’s comments “even more disgusting and disturbing.”
Jillian Michael’s daughter is probably so traumatized living with a mother who thinks that Black people are responsible for their own oppression.
— Kyla Jenée Lacey (@Kyla_Lacey) August 14, 2025
Another X user added, “Jillian Michael’s daughter is probably so traumatized living with a mother who thinks that Black people are responsible for their own oppression.”
