Oh, you thought going to a WNBA basketball game might be an escape from the arguments and polarization that are so common in American life these days? Ha, good one.
Some of the atmosphere in the public and media that has swirled around the professional womenB次元官网网址檚 league since the season started last month has been less fun time and more culture war, with rookie eye of the storm.
The white, 22-year-old University of Iowa college standout and has become a canvas for all sorts of projections in her debut season with the Indiana Fever. She, and the predominantly Black and brown women playing in the league alongside her, seem to have become the latest proxies for longstanding American issues from race, gender and sexual orientation to who gets to take (or is thrust into) the spotlight and who gets ignored.
That shouldnB次元官网网址檛 really surprise anyone, says Sarah Fields, professor of communication at the University of Colorado Denver, who studies the intersection of sports and American culture. B次元官网网址淪port,B次元官网网址� she says, B次元官网网址渋s a microcosm (that) reflects and refracts society.B次元官网网址�
What makes Clark distinctive also makes her a lightning rod
That Clark merits attention for her basketball prowess is not in doubt.
B次元官网网址� She holds the record for most points by a Division I college basketball player, was known for her three-point shots along with a strong passing ability, and led her team to two straight national championship games. (They did end up losing both, to LSU and the University of South Carolina.)
B次元官网网址� She was the unquestioned top choice for the 2024 WNBA draft that also included Angel Reese of LSU, Kamilla Cardoso of South Carolina and Cameron Brink of Stanford University.
B次元官网网址� Clark has also had the fortune of entering the scene at a time when womenB次元官网网址檚 sports, at both the collegiate and professional levels, are seeing increasing interest and engagement from the public. The sponsorship money started coming for her in college, thanks to name, image and likeness opportunities, and she just recently signed a signature sneaker .
But this is America, where people who may have been flying under the radar or are known only to a smaller community can garner widespread public attention and celebrity almost overnight, and all of a sudden everyoneB次元官网网址檚 got thoughts and opinions to offer.
In some corners of the internet and among some of the (predominantly male) sports punditocracy, Clark is being talked about as if she is THE reason the almost-30-year-old WNBA is FINALLY interesting enough to watch, and that the other players should keep that in mind and basically be B次元官网网址渘iceB次元官网网址� to her, as if she needs to be protected.
That a young white woman is being put in the central role, with Black and brown women relegated to supporting characters, is about as old and familiar a trope as exists in a country with as troubled a racial history as the United States, says Frederick Gooding, Jr., an associate professor of African American studies at Texas Christian University.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 not so much about the visibility of Clark,B次元官网网址� he says. B次元官网网址淚t also speaks to the invisibility of Black females and how difficult it is for Black females to obtain that same typeB次元官网网址� of attention.
Bypassing Clark for the US Olympic team caused a backlash
ThereB次元官网网址檚 been chatter that the veterans of the league are merely jealous of her spotlight, that sheB次元官网网址檚 unfairly bearing the brunt of overly physical play like when Chennedy Carter of the Chicago Sky knocked her down, which was later deemed a flagrant foul. Rough plays against other players, like when Reese was clotheslined by Alyssa Thomas of the Connecticut Sun, doesnB次元官网网址檛 get nearly the same attention.
When Clark wasnB次元官网网址檛 picked last week for the team as a rookie, the outrage was vocal from some, who chastised the move as being short-sighted for not seeing the marketing opportunity.
B次元官网网址淗ow dare you make this decision?B次元官网网址� sports commentator Stephen A. Smith asked on ESPNB次元官网网址檚 B次元官网网址淔irst Take.B次元官网网址� B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 stupid.B次元官网网址�
Some of the commentary, especially online, was overtly racial, taking the stance that Clark was being discriminated against in the WNBA and in the Olympics selection because she is white and many of the other players are Black. (There are white players on the Olympics roster, a veteran squad in search of its eighth straight Olympic gold against tough international competition.)
On the flip side, there are critiques that the focus on Clark is in part BECAUSE sheB次元官网网址檚 white B次元官网网址� that in a country as riven by racial tensions as the United States, itB次元官网网址檚 another example of how Black women are ignored or stereotyped, even though they built the sports league in which she is now among the most recognized names.
That WNBA teams are now using chartered flights instead of commercial ones comes after years of advocacy from players, but the timing of the leagueB次元官网网址檚 announcement this season was taken by some as a reflection on ClarkB次元官网网址檚 presence.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 like, OK, can we talk about the decades that Black women in the sport have been advocating for these and not just say that itB次元官网网址檚 about this one white woman in this one moment now? Because itB次元官网网址檚 not,B次元官网网址� says Letisha Engracia Cardoso Brown, an assistant professor of sociology at the University of Cincinnati. B次元官网网址淓specially in a sport thatB次元官网网址檚 dominated by women of color, by LGBTQ+ individuals as well, to kind of center our attention on this straight white woman is just B次元官网网址� I mean, itB次元官网网址檚 par for the course.B次元官网网址�
Clark just wants to talk basketball
To be clear, none of this was started or even encouraged by Clark, who has tried to keep her public commentary to the game itself. Asked about it last week, she initially said: B次元官网网址淧eople can talk about what they want to talk about, create conversations about whatever it is. But for myself, I am just here to play basketball.B次元官网网址�
But without referring to her by name, WNBA player DiJonai Carrington of the Connecticut Sun, who is Black, then questioned in a social media post how it could be acceptable to not speak out about it.
B次元官网网址淗ow one can not be bothered by their name being used to justify racism, bigotry, misogyny, xenophobia, homophobia & the intersectionalities of them all is nuts,B次元官网网址� she said, adding: B次元官网网址淲e all have a platform. We all have a voice & they all hold weight. Silence is a luxury.B次元官网网址�
Clark gave a stronger response later that same day, saying it was B次元官网网址渄isappointingB次元官网网址� and B次元官网网址渘ot acceptableB次元官网网址� that people would be using her to promote their own agendas involving racism and sexism.
B次元官网网址淭his league is the league I grew up admiring and wanting to be a part of. Some of the women in this league were my biggest idols and role models growing up,B次元官网网址� she said. B次元官网网址淭reating every single woman in this league with the same amount of respect is a basic human thing that everybody should do.B次元官网网址�
As a fan of womenB次元官网网址檚 basketball, Naomi Oberman-Breindel, 36, of Manhattan, wants to see that become the case.
B次元官网网址淭here are a lot of incredible basketball players with really interesting and compelling stories B次元官网网址� as players and as people,B次元官网网址� she wrote in an email. B次元官网网址淲hat is happening right now feels like a forced monoculture with a singular focus on one person.B次元官网网址�
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