San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick’s protest against racial inequality has taken the country by storm and it looks like it won’t stick with just the NFL this year. In last night’s opening game of the WNBA playoffs, members of the Indiana Fever and Phoenix Mercury took a knee during the anthem in protest.
Fever star Tamika Catchings, who played her final game last night, commented on how proud she was of her teammates making a statement.
“This game of basketball is important for a lot of reasons,” Catchings said. “One of them is bringing people together. Even uniting people. Well, we thought it was important to have a voice about something greater than basketball. But the good thing is, we were together. (The gesture) was something that was very impromptu, but I am very proud of our team – as people – to be able to stand together for something we believed in.”
Entire team of WNBA players kneels during National Anthem in protest of police shootings of black men. https://t.co/nlEV4EZNro pic.twitter.com/CryjscGrh5
— Jim Roberts (@nycjim) September 22, 2016
The Minnesota Lynx made a statement earlier this year by wearing “Black Lives Matter” shirts ahead of a game, which caused police working the game to walk off the job.
This is certainly a big way for the WNBA to take a stand and I am sure it isn’t the last we have heard of other sports doing this throughout the rest of the year.
Can’t get enough of Campus Sports? Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to stay updated with the latest news and exclusive giveaways!
Photo Credit: Twitter
