When are y’all gonna stop acting like these WNBA players ain’t with the shits?
In July, Sen. Kelly Loeffler, who also happens to be part-owner of the Atlanta Dream, had some things to get off her chest regarding the league’s commitment to the Black Lives Matter movement and “all this Breonna Taylor stuff”—which isn’t a direct quote from her, but likely something she spews with contempt to her fellow Republican cronies.
“Now more than ever, we should be united in our goal to remove politics from sports,” Raggedy Ann wrote to WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert. “The lives of each and every African-American matter, and there’s no debating the fact that there is no place for racism in our country. However, I adamantly oppose the Black Lives Matter political movement. [...] I believe it is totally misaligned with the values and goals of the WNBA and the Atlanta Dream, where we support tolerance and inclusion.”
What a Republican thing to say.
That quite literally makes no sense, considering this movement was birthed from the absence of tolerance and inclusion, but okay. But instead of succinctly telling her to shut the entire fuck up, Engelbert dropped a diss track issued a statement informing the general public that Loeffler is “no longer involved in the day-to-day business of the team” and that Black lives do in fact matter, whether Raggedy Ann wants them to or not.
“The WNBA is based on the principle of equal and fair treatment of all people,” Engelbert said. “We, along with the teams and players, will continue to use our platforms to vigorously advocate for social justice.”
Loeffler, a “lifelong conservative” who describes herself as “pro-Second Amendment, pro-military, pro-wall and pro-Trump” presumably was less than pleased with the WNBA’s response, but the league was too preoccupied with telling her to go to hell to acknowledge her white woman tears.
“@KLoeffler in all respect. We don’t give AF what you express,” tweeted Washington Mystics guard Natasha Cloud, who is skipping this season to focus on social justice. “Sell the team. Cause what our league stands for and against...is mindsets and abused power and privilege like yours. BLACK LIVES MATTER.”
And in one of the best examples of “keep that same energy” in the history of ever, now WNBA players are openly campaigning for Raphael Warnock, Loeffler’s opponent in November’s senate race.
When they’re not running up the scoreboard, players throughout the league have been living their best lives in black “Vote Warnock” t-shirts, while teams themselves have encouraged fans to register to vote.
There’s also this gem from Dream center Elizabeth Williams:
“We are @wnba players, but like the late, great John Lewis said, we are also ordinary people with extraordinary vision,” she tweeted. “@ReverendWarnock has spent his life fighting for the people and we need him in Washington. Join the movement for a better Georgia at http://Warnockforgeorgia.com”
Warnock got wind of the WNBA’s support of his campaign and expressed his gratitude on Twitter.
“I am honored and humbled by the overwhelming support from the @WNBA players,” he tweeted. “This movement gives us the opportunity to fight for what we believe in, and I stand by all athletes promoting social justice on and off the court. #BlackLivesMatter”
But Loeffler did too, and according to the New York Post, she channeled her inner Donald John Trump and responded exactly how you expected her to.
“This is just more proof that the out of control cancel culture wants to shut out anyone who disagrees with them,” she wrote. “It’s clear that the league is more concerned with playing politics than basketball.”
She also doubled down on her disdain for the Black Lives Matter movement and “its radical ideas and Marxist foundations, which include defunding the police and eroding the nuclear family.”
Oh no! Not the nuclear family!
Kudos to the WNBA for once again handling their business with “good trouble” and please let me know where I can find one of those “Vote Warnock” t-shirts. Thank you in advance.