Ever since the Minnesota Lynx held a press conference prior to this past Saturday’s game vs. the Wings—the team that plays in the same area that was the site of a mass shooting where five police officers were shot to death—much has happened on the Black Lives Matter front involving the WNBA.
The Minneapolis Star-Tribune reported that four off-duty police officers working Saturday’s game at Target Center walked out after the press conference where several Lynx players wore shirts that read, “Change Starts with Us—Justice and Accountability.”
On the back of the shirts read the names of two African-American men that were shot and killed by officers the previous week—Alton Sterling in Baton Rouge and Philando Castile in Minnesota. They also had the shield of the Dallas Police Department along with the phrase “Black Lives Matter.”
The Lynx did not wear the shirts prior to Tuesday’s game in San Antonio at the Stars. A Black Lives Matter event has been planned for next Friday for the Lynx’s game at home vs. the Seattle Storm—the team’s final contest prior to the Olympic break.
The Lynx were not the only team to wear shirts honoring those that had died in the shootings. The New York Liberty also did so prior to their game at Madison Square Garden on Sunday—also vs. the San Antonio Stars. Those that the Liberty wore featured the hashtags #BlackLivesMatter and #Dallas5 along with a blank hashtag on the back of the shirts.
.@SwinCash @tinacharles31 @CarolynSwords @kstokes41 & Tanisha Wright talk about the importance of taking a stand.https://t.co/mks402I9ST
— New York Liberty (@nyliberty) July 11, 2016
The more that you’re able to voice your opinion and voice how you feel, the more other individuals can sit and think about it and see how we feel. You know, I think a lot of people see us on TV and just see us as athletes, but we’re not just athletes.
–Tina Charles
If we want change, then we got to have a voice. We’ve got to be willing to step out. We’ve got to be willing to take the blow. We’ve got to be willing to not be popular in some people’s eyes and we’ve got to be willing to voice the injustices that are happening.
–Tanisha Wright
The fact that WNBA players and teams have decided to step up and recognize that there is, indeed, a problem is a big step forward. Popular male sports figures at times do not speak out on these issues at risk of antagonizing their relationship with a company that is paying them millions to be salesmen for their products.
Sports may seem to be trivial at times, but let’s not underestimate the power of sports in society—and how athletes can and do have the power to bring about worthwhile change.
By: Akiem Bailum (@AkiemBailum on Twitter, Instagram)
