Published on Portside (https://portside.org)
WNBA Players
Refuse to Talk Basketball in Protest of Fines for Black Warmup Shirts
Des Bieler
Friday, July 22, 2016
The Washington Post
On Thursday, the WNBA fined the organizations and players of the
New York Liberty, Indiana Fever and Phoenix Mercury for wearing black warmup
shirts to express their concern about recent incidents of violence by and against
police officers. As it happened, the only WNBA game on the schedule Thursday
was a Liberty-Fever matchup, and after the game, players from both sides made
it clear that they would not be deterred from speaking out on social issues.
In fact, the New York and Indiana players refused to take
questions about basketball from media members in their respective locker rooms,
expressing a willingness to discuss anything else. With her teammates assembled
behind her, Liberty forward Swin Cash made a statement about the game, an 82-70
Fever win, and then Tanisha Wright stepped forward.
“We really feel like there’s still an issue here in America,”
Wright said. “And we want to be able to use our platforms, we want to be able
to use our voices, we don’t want to let anybody silence us in what we want to
talk about. So you guys can ask away about anything that’s happening in
society.
“It’s unfortunate that the WNBA has fined us and not supported its
players.”
Meanwhile, Fever forward Tamika Catchings was affirming that her
team “would not be answering any basketball questions.” Catchings, one of the
league’s all-time greats, said that the media blackout was a “group effort” and
not the idea of any one particular player.
“I think, no matter what our success is on the court, basketball
is just that, it’s just basketball, and there’s a whole other world outside of
that, and it’s way more important than what we do,” Catchings said. She also
referenced calls by Carmelo Anthony and other NBA players for their fellow athletes
to speak out.
Fever forward Devereaux Peters said in an Instagram post Thursday,
“We won’t be silenced.” She added, “People must understand that Black Lives
Matter has nothing to do with being more important than any other race, and
ABSOLUTELY DOES NOT SUPPORT KILLING COPS.”
Liberty forward Tina Charles was given the WNBA’s player of the
month award Thursday, and she accepted it with her official warmup shirt
inside-out, thus resembling a black shirt. “After seeing the African-American
male shot three times after helping an autistic person out this morning in
Florida, I knew I couldn’t be silent,” Charles said after Thursday’s game (via
ESPN). “Knowing the player I am representing this organization, if anybody was
going to wear it, it had to be me. I have no problem wearing this shirt inside
out for the rest of the season until we are able to have the WNBA support us.”
“My teammates and I will continue to use our platform and raise
awareness for the #BlackLivesMatter movement until the @wnba gives its support
as it does for Breast Cancer Awareness, Pride and other subject matters,”
Charles explained in an Instagram post.
A perceived discrepancy between the WNBA’s response to the mass
shooting at a gay nightclub in Orlando, when the league applauded its players’
response — even distributing commemorative shirts — and its reaction to the
black shirts was noted by some other players on social media.
“We are proud of WNBA players’ engagement and passionate advocacy
for non-violent solutions to difficult social issues but expect them to comply
with the league’s uniform guidelines,” league president Lisa Borders told the
Associated Press on Wednesday.
Des writes for the Early Lead and the D.C. Sports Bog, scouring
the Web to bring readers items of interest, both serious and amusing. He also
covers fantasy football, as well as fitness topics for the MisFits.
Follow @DesBieler
Source URL: https://portside.org/2016-07-22/wnba-players-refuse-talk-basketball-protest-fines-black-warmup-shirts-0
Donations can be sent
to the Baltimore Nonviolence Center, 325 E. 25th St., Baltimore, MD
21218. Ph: 410-323-1607; Email: mobuszewski [at] verizon.net. Go to http://baltimorenonviolencecenter.blogspot.com/
"The master class
has always declared the wars; the subject class has always fought the battles.
The master class has had all to gain and nothing to lose, while the subject
class has had nothing to gain and everything to lose--especially their
lives." Eugene Victor Debs
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