The torrent of verbal abuse that recently greeted WNBA player Caitlin Clark after comments she made during her interview with Time magazine has been both amusing and disturbing. For the tiny segment of people who may be unaware of who I am referring to, Caitlin Clark, a rising star in the WNBA and one of the sport’ most discussed players, recently made headlines when Time magazine named her Athlete of the Year for 2024. Supporters have hugely lauded the 22-year-old Generation Z Indiana Fever player for her fascinating on-court talent, leadership, and feverish work ethic. Nonetheless, her comments during the Time interview about race and privilege ignited considerable controversy and fierce debate about race, privilege, and representation in sports.

In the Time interview, she expressed her admiration and respect for Black women who have paved the way in female basketball and the importance of promoting diversity as well as diverse voices in the sport. She further stated she hoped to utilize her platform to develop possibilities for others, particularly Black athletes, while acknowledging that various racial situations in professional sports often play out in ways that benefit White athletes like herself.

Her supporters lauded Clark for promoting her platform to highlight systemic inequities and acknowledge the contributions of Black players who made it possible for athletes like her to flourish. They argued that her political astuteness is a revelatory and crucial dialogue in professional sports. However, critics denounced her comments as “performative,” asking whether a Black player in a disproportionately White-dominated sport would feel pressured to make similar statements. Some even questioned if Clark’s acknowledgment of privilege detracts from her own hard-earned success.

Former Fox News media personality Megyn Kelly of blackface fame or rather, infamy megyn-kelly-nbc-fired-blackface- went on an unhinged rant against Caitlin Clark. “Look at this. She’s on the knee all but apologizing for being White and getting attention,” Kelly wrote on X. “The self-flagellation. The ‘oh pls pay attention to the Black players who are REALY the ones you want to celebrate.’ Condescending. Fake. Transparent. Sad.”

Clay Travis, the founder of conservative sports site OutKick, reposted a video of Clark at the gala and shamed her for her comments. “If Caitlin Clark insists on thanking people for the WNBA legacy she joined, why doesn’t she thank the NBA players who have spent 25 years subsidizing the WNBA, a league that has still never made a single dollar in profit?” Travis wrote in a series of tweets.

Both Kelly’s and Travis’s comments rapidly went viral, fracturing public opinion. Supporters of both hosts agreed that Clark, as an athlete, should focus solely on her sporting achievements rather than engage in discussions of privilege, which they viewed as inflammatory and divisive. Many felt her comments implied she did not fully earn her accolades, despite her undeniable talent and hard work.

Supporters argue that Clark’s comments are a reminder of the WNBA’s legacy as a league that has always been deeply connected to Black culture and that place her within a broader narrative - one where her success does not overshadow the contributions of those who came before her. The fact that the WNBA league is an organization where Black LGBTQIA+ women are well represented is a factor that accounts for the considerable degree of latent and blatant homophobia and racism among a segment of conservative right wing critics. The incident has been a Rorschach Test of epic proportions.

The distinctive Black experience in America has been simultaneously marked and marred with rivers of blood, mountains of sweat, and more than a few tears. Such historical and sadistic treatment has consistently manifested itself centuries later with real psychological impact that no reasonable person can deny.

The truth is that people like Megyn Kelly and Clay Travis would prefer that Caitlyn Clark tout the disingenuous “we are all Americans. We can all succeed regardless of race if we just work hard enough and pull ourselves up by our bootstraps, etc.” rhetoric. As long as Clark remained quiet and resorted to “shutting up and dribbling,” diplomatically responding to or refraining from commenting on the media’s questions about race, she was the good, talented, athletic, White goddess to many on the right.

Now that she has gone rouge and directly and unapologetically weighed in on racial issues, she is no longer the White Cinderella to the MAGA right. She has offended their racial sensibilities, exposed vehement, rabid, untrammeled white fragility and has now reverted to becoming an ugly stepsister. As Megyn Kelly and many on the political, social and cultural right see it, it is permissible for them to comment on cultural issues or for others to do so as long as they possess the supposedly “correct” position on the issue at hand. Otherwise, you need to keep your mouth shut and your opinion to yourself. I DON’T THINK SO!

For Clark, the situation represents a test of her tenacity and skill in navigating various possible political baggage associated with being a high-profile athlete. Her decision to address privilege directly may jilt some fans, but it has also politically embedded her with a growing movement of athletes who promote their platforms to discuss and draw attention to political and social issues.

The controversy surrounding Caitlin Clark’s “White privilege” remarks reflects the cultural dexterity required to avoid political minefields when discussing controversial topics such as race and privilege in a public forum, especially professional sports. While some view her remarks as a careless deviation from her athletic achievements, others see them as a strong and essential historical recognition of the various inequities prevalent in the industry. Bravo to Ms. Caitlin Clark for speaking truth to power and KEEPING IT REAL!