The WNBA’s players, including the Washington Mystics’, are entering a bubble environment at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida, right as coronavirus cases spike in the state. Just today, the state added 9,989 new confirmed cases.
The league also has its own controversy with one of its team owners. Kathy Loeffler, co-owner of the Atlanta Dream, is also a U.S. senator for the State of Georgia, where she is a member of the Republican Party. Earlier this week, she wrote a letter to WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert stating her disapproval of the “Black Lives Matter” movement. The league plans on dedicating this season to do exactly what Loeffler doesn’t want: have a social justice movement around Black Lives Matter.
Some players, including Washington Mystics guard Natasha Cloud, are sitting out the 2020 season, in part to focus her energy on this exact issue. She will get paid her full salary by Converse, who signed her to a shoe contract earlier this year.
Converse Will Pay Salary of WNBA Star Who Forfeited Season To Focus On Social Justice Reform (via @CassiusLife_) https://t.co/nCYByb6ySS
— TMZ (@TMZ) July 6, 2020
Loeffler was increasingly vocal about her political views regarding Black Lives Matter and protests in recent days leading up to her letter to Commissioner Engelbert. And Cloud didn’t hold back.
Get her weak ass out of our league. https://t.co/wcWqJNIWtK
— Natasha Cloud (@T_Cloud4) July 4, 2020
And now that her letter is out, the WNBA players union is already calling for Loeffler’s ouster from league ownership.
E-N-O-U-G-H!
— WNBPA (@TheWNBPA) July 7, 2020
O-U-T!https://t.co/XgIS2vRb2X
The league issued a statement yesterday regarding Loeffler, stating that she hasn’t been involved day-to-day since October 2019.
Cloud was also on CNN last night, where she was interviewed by Don Lemon on his daily show, “CNN Tonight” and the video is in the embed above.
In the interview, Cloud talked about why she takes issue with Loeffler’s comments. From there, Cloud considers the WNBA to be a “safe space” for many people, including minorities, the LGBTQ community and more. She also mentioned what ”defund the police” means in her eyes. It is about moving some, not all resources from law enforcement to social resources like health and food, especially for marginalized communities.