In one of the zaniest manifestations of a political season gone mad, a group of six males gathered across from the White House to protest what they believed is the increasing socialization of yoga. Holding signs and answering questions from curious bystander, this band of retirement aged, white men from San Antonio, Texas, spent much of the day in a tea party styled demonstration.
Their story began in a yoga studio named Earl’s of San Antonio in which they practice what they call "real American yoga". They call themselves “Yoguys” and practice a style of yoga that seems to incorporate guns and beer. Hearing that Michelle Obama did yoga on the White House lawn, they became convinced that President Obama would push for yoga to be included in the new free preventative services by health care providers. They decided to drive to DC and protest “this socialized yoga”. When asked if they were part of the Tea Party movement, they replied, “Hell no, we are the YogiTea Party”.
This group claims that there is a vast left wing yoga blogger conspiracy run by fundamentalist yogis who are trying to topple American yoga “as we know it”. They cite examples of these bloggers railing against recent developments in the yoga world which show an increasing commercialization, blatant nudity and irrelevant yoga magazines that show only young, flexible, white women. These yoga blogger seem to decry the secularization of yoga and the alliance to corporate interests in the exploitation of yoga by many upstart yoga stars who feel they need not adhere to yoga’s historical standards.
After a few hours of waving their signs, the group trashed them in a nearby trashcan and headed to bar a few blocks away. Though they are not sure if they had convinced anyone of their concerns, they did nonetheless press the point that they knew “Obama was born in India” and are convinced that he will soon outsource yoga back to India."
