Throughout the WNBA season, racial tension and controversial comments from fans followed Caitlin Clark from her days at Iowa to her debut in the league, creating discord that true WNBA fans disliked. Former WNBA superstar Sue Bird addressed the issue on her podcast, A Touch More with Sue Bird & Meagan Rapinoe, on Wednesday. Clark, too, has faced accusations of benefiting from white privilege, and at one point, was even called a “white bitch” by Pat McAfee, who later apologized.
Bird pointed out that many fans who support Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever should not be considered true WNBA fans.
“It’s not Fever fans or Caitlin fans as a whole,” Bird said. “We’re talking about a certain group of people pushing racist agendas, spreading hate, and creating division online, pretending to be fans of the Fever or Caitlin. Whether or not they actually like basketball, I don’t know. But it’s that group of people we’re addressing—certainly not all Fever fans or all new fans, just those fueling this toxic behavior.”
Bird went on to accuse these fans of using Clark as a pawn, emphasizing that racism has long been an issue in the WNBA.
“Can we call a spade a spade? Racism has been affecting the WNBA for years. This isn’t new. In that way, I do think Caitlin is being used as a pawn. She didn’t bring racism into the WNBA—it’s been here. What’s shocking is that people are only now realizing it. We’ve been trying to tell you,” Bird explained.
Connecticut Sun guard Alyssa Thomas also shared her experiences, saying she has never encountered the level of racism she’s faced from Indiana Fever fans.
“In my 11-year career, I’ve never dealt with racial comments like I have from the Indiana Fever fan base. It’s unacceptable. There’s no place for it,” Thomas said.
Clark herself expressed that she doesn’t want anyone in the league to experience racism and that it’s completely unacceptable. While this issue doesn’t seem like it will disappear anytime soon, fans must learn to decide where to focus their energy and what to ignore.
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