The WNBA began its season by dedicating it to Breonna Taylor and the Say Her Name movement, which raises awareness for Black female victims of police violence. Then both the New York Liberty and the Seattle Storm went back to the locker rooms for the playing of the National Anthem.
This was no surprise. In early July, the WNBA announced it would be focused on the fight for social justice throughout this season. On July 6, the WNBA announced a new platform, The Justice Movement, and the creation of the WNBA/WNBPA Social Justice Council.
The WNBA website states the mission that the Social Justice Council will be, “a driving force of necessary and continuing conversations about race, voting rights, LGBTQ+ advocacy, and gun control amongst other important societal issues.”
“In its inaugural season, the Social Justice Council will cultivate designated spaces for community conversations, virtual roundtables, player-produced podcasts, and other activations to address this country’s long history of inequality, implicit bias and systemic racism that has targeted black and brown communities.”
The focus on social justice is nothing new for the WNBA and it’s players. During the 2017 WNBA Finals, the Los Angeles Sparks left the court for the National Anthem. Minnesota Lynx forward Maya Moore, widely considered to be one of the best players in the league, opted out of the past two seasons in order to focus on criminal justice reform and to work on overturning the conviction of Jonathon Irons, who was sentenced to 50 years in prison for burglary and assault. Moore was crucial in reversing Irons’ sentence.
This season, the WNBA and its players are taking a more unified approach toward social justice by working together to create a platform for the players to express their message.
"It wasn't the players and the league combined together four years ago," Sparks guard Seimone Augustus told ESPN. "Now you have the league that is embracing what the players are going through. Being that this league is 80% Black, [we] feel a need to speak up and speak out. They've been reaching out to figure out what is it that the players want, not just the league throwing out, 'This is what we're going to do.'"
This season, players have Taylor’s name on the back of their jerseys. Their warm up shirts say “Black Lives Matters” on the front and “Say Her Name” on the back. “Black Lives Matters” is also written on the court at the IMG academy where games are being played this season.
Players have also made Atlanta Dream co-owner and United States Senator Kelly Loefller a focal point. The teams have worn shirts that say “Vote Warnock” in support of Raphael Warnock, one of Loefler’s opponents in her U.S. Senate election this November, after Loefler wrote a critical letter to WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert saying that she opposed the Black Lives Matter movement and then went on to write that the movement does not share the values of the WNBA and the Atlanta Dream.
Multiple players expressed outrage over these statements, including former Dream player Layshia Clarendon.
“It’s actually really hurtful to see her true colors I had no idea while I played for ATL she felt this way. Happy to own us as long as we stay quiet and perform.” Clarendon tweeted.
Clarendon also told ABC News, “That’s what we see so often with sports, with culture, with music is that you’re OK with Black people as long as they kind of stay in their place or they’re performing or they’re sports stars.”
Due to the pandemic and the fight for social justice, this season has been unique for the WNBA. With viewership up 63% from last season according to ESPN, players are using their increased platform to voice the messages that they feel need to be heard.
"I feel like we've always been at the forefront, we've just been ignored," Augustus said. "We haven't been covered as much as we are now with the things we're doing. We're all here because we feel we can use our platforms on a bigger scale."
Clearly the WNBA has been speaking up and now people are finally starting to listen.