WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert is being accused of dodging questions of player safety on and off the court in the face of growing racial tensions among fans and players alike as some players target Caitlin Clark on the court and as fans lash out against that on social media.
Engelbert appeared on CNBC on Monday and was asked about how the WNBA “tries to stay ahead” of racism and homophobia as the rivalry grows between rookie sensation Caitlin Clark and a large number of black players, many of whom are lesbians.
The WNBA chief, though, did not engage with the question and instead sidestepped the issue to talk about how wonderful “rivalries” are for the league, the Daily Mail reported.
“Well the one thing that’s great about the league right now, we do sit at this intersection of culture, and sports, and fashion and music. Like, the WNBA players are really looked at now as kind of cultural icons,” she replied. “And when you have that, you have a lot of attention on you. There’s no more apathy. Everybody cares.”
“But the one thing I know about sports, you need rivalry,” she continued. “That’s what makes people watch, they want to watch games of consequence between rivals. They don’t want everybody being nice to one another.”
Many have pointed out that Engelbert’s unsatisfactory reply did not address any of the issues currently roiling the WNBA’s players and fan base, nor did she answer the question she was asked.
Many in the left-wing sports media are raising the alarm over the “racism and homophobia” of fans who are flooding social media with attacks on black and/or lesbian players because of their constant efforts to cause physical harm to the white, heterosexual Caitlin Clark. The rising tide of heated rhetoric has many black players claiming that they feel “threatened” and that their safety is at risk in their private lives.
Naturally, these sports media leftists are utterly ignoring the reason that so many people are putting the black players in the cross hairs, and the media are acting as if all of a sudden WNBA fans have turned into foaming-at-the-mouths haters.
Few of these attacks from fans would be occurring if a growing number of WNBA players and personalities including Angel Reese, Chennedy Carter, former player Sheryl Swoopes, and others, had not been doing their level best to destroy Clark both on and off the court — and attempting to cause her both physical and mental distress.
These supposedly “racist” fans are not coming out of the blue with their attacks. They are reacting to what they perceive as unfair and even injurious treatment of Clark.
Still, the provocation aside — which the critics are ignoring — there is no excuse to engage in racist or homophobic rhetoric.
Sadly, Commissioner Engelbert seems to be unable to find a way to address either the issue of the clear hate and physical danger Clark is facing or the racism and homophobia deployed by some fans as they defend Clark. Instead of dealing with these dual and very difficult issues, Engelbert gives us empty platitudes about how rivalry is good for the soul.
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