USA Today columnist Nancy Armour is well aware of the outrage she caused this week when she released an opinion piece on Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark.
The story that Armour published was supposed to focus on Clark's antics on the court. Armour claims the former No. 1 pick's history of flopping and berating the refs puts her opponents in the WNBA at risk.
“It seems there is a white nationalist element to Clark’s fandom that is deeply, deeply problematic, made even more so because the WNBA is made up predominantly of Black women, many of them queer,” Armour wrote. “When Clark claims fouls that don’t exist, when she goes on profanity-laced tirades at referees, those racists see her as a white woman in need of saving and take matters into their own hands.”
Armour then brought up Emmett Till, a Chicago native who was abducted and lynched in Mississippi in 1955.
“It shouldn’t need reminding this country has an awful history of Black people being harmed, even killed, in the name of “defending” white women. The WNBA’s All-Star Game this weekend is in Chicago, Emmett Till’s hometown, and a local art gallery is currently hosting an exhibit imagining his life if he hadn’t been lynched. While it’s incumbent on the WNBA to do more to protect its players, there also should be an expectation on Clark to recognize the wider consequences of her actions.”
© Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images.
There were plenty of fans and media members disgusted with Armour's opinion piece, especially since there was no need to mention Till. On Thursday afternoon, she addressed the backlash she's receiving online.
Although she regrets mentioning Till in this fashion, Armour stands by her initial argument.
"In my recent column, I made an inartful comparison with the murder of Emmett Till. I intended to connect the issues the WNBA is currently facing with its All-Star Game being hosted in Till’s hometown of Chicago. I obviously did not provide enough context for that," Armour said in a statement released on Instagram. "However, this point stands: There is a history in this country of perceived threats to white women being weaponized against African-Americans, and the danger that poses to Black players in the league. Players have been abused online and have reported receiving death threats. That has to be taken more seriously. I sincerely regret that my lack of appropriate context is overshadowing that important conversation and the action that needs to be taken by the WNBA to address it directly - for the benefit of ALL players."
Will WNBA fans accept this statement from Armour?
Judging by the initial responses online, Armour's statement has failed to cool down the temperature in the room.
"This statement sucks. Stop letting the worst aspects of the comment section frame the conversation and turning entertaining basketball into a deranged sociological thesis," WNBA writer Robin Lundberg said.
"They had a meeting somewhere in midtown Manhattan with lawyers and PR people and they all agreed this was the best statement they could come up with," Peter Bukowski of Locked On Packers replied. "Amazing."
"I am sincerely asking everyone to stop being so weird about basketball," one fan replied.
"Nice non-apology apology. Nothing like taking responsibility for your actions," a second fan sarcastically wrote.
It's truly a shame this controversy is dominating the discussion ahead of this year's WNBA All-Star Weekend.
