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Comments that Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham made in an ESPN profile last month sparked a weeks-long debate about transgender athletes in sports. The WNBPA has now released its own statement addressing the discourse.
In a statement released on Friday, the Women’s National Basketball Player’s Association said they will not be used as “political pawns” in the ongoing culture war debate about transgender athletes in sports.
While the statement does not mention Cunningham by name, her specific comments, or the congressional letter sent to WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert, it does denounce the “hate, abuse, and demonization” of transgender people that’s occurred. Cunningham’s comments were directly responsible for this latest wave of discourse.
The WNBPA released a statement on the transgender athlete debate, saying the union “will not be used as political pawns”
The statement also affirmed the union’s commitment to “justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion” and stated that “hate, abuse, and demonization of any person or group of people, including transgender people, only fuel fear, division, and harm.”
“To everyone who loves this game: The WNBPA represents 200+ individual people with different lived experiences, cultures, lifestyles, and opinions. We embrace justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion. Those are the values that unite this Union and allow it to protect women’s sports while creating transformational change,” the statement reads.
“Hate, abuse, and demonization of any person or group of people, including transgender people, only fuel fear, division, and harm. We will continue to have hard conversations. But we will not be used as political pawns,” it continues.
“Support the Players. Support the Fans. At games, notify security if you witness hateful, violent, or abusive behavior. Online, report abusive posts and drown out the bots and bad actors. At home, tell your elected officials to strengthen Title IX.”