Indiana Fever rookie guard Caitlin Clark made it very clear on Thursday that she condemns her name being used in any harmful way to fuel toxic discourse.
At no fault of her own, Clark has turned into a major chess piece in the ongoing culture war surrounding her WNBA arrival. It has taken focus away from what’s happening on the court and is unnecessarily dragging Clark and other players into a noxious discourse that occasionally and inexcusably veers into misogyny and racism.
On Tuesday, Clark was asked about her name being brought into those culture wars, and she said that “it’s not something I can control” and that she doesn’t “see a lot of it.” It’s a stance that affirmed that her main focus is basketball and that the rest is just noise.
#IndianaFever’s Caitlin Clark on her name being weaponized in non-sports topics:
“It’s not something I can control. … And to be honest, I don’t see a lot of it.”
“People can talk about what they want to talk about. … I’m just here to play basketball.”
Qs by @JimTrotter_NFL pic.twitter.com/VhGC7cIgLf
— James Boyd (@RomeovilleKid) June 13, 2024
Well, the answer seemingly caught the eye of Connecticut Sun guard DiJonai Carrington, who felt that Clark should’ve spoken out more about the negativity that comes from her name being attached to problematic stances.
Dawg. How one can not be bothered by their name being used to justify racism, bigotry, misogyny, xenophobia, homophobia & the intersectionalities of them all is nuts. We all see the sh*t. We all have a platform. We all have a voice & they all hold weight. Silence is a luxury.
— dιjonaι carrιngтon♛ (@DijonaiVictoria) June 13, 2024
When she was asked by The Athletic’s James Boyd about the specific nature of her name being used to push racist and misogynistic views, Clark condemned those actions and called for all the women of the WNBA to be treated equally.
“It’s disappointing,” Clark said. “Everybody in our world deserves the same amount of respect. The women in our league deserve the same amount of respect. So, people should not be using my name to push those agendas.”
I asked #IndianaFever’s Caitlin Clark directly about her name being weaponized for racism/misogyny (as Dijonai Carrington alluded to):
“It’s disappointing. … Everybody in our world deserves the same amount of respect. The women in our league deserve the same amount of respect.” pic.twitter.com/gyAWBqGG8c
— James Boyd (@RomeovilleKid) June 13, 2024
Clark’s words will hopefully ring true throughout the wider discourse and show what side she’s on when her name gets dragged into larger conversations about pertinent issues of race and gender.
As WNBA player-turned-ESPN commentator Chiney Ogwumike mentioned this week, the weaponization of league narratives surrounding Clark and other players is taking away from “the beauty of the game.”
One can only hope that the fervor will die down and that Clark and her fellow WNBA athletes will be able to focus on the game they love and not mean-spirited narratives that propagate harmful rhetoric.
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