Chicago Sky forward Angel Reese is calling out the media for how she’s been publicly portrayed, amid renewed discussion about a rise in racist remarks aimed at WNBA players.
On Thursday, Reese responded to a video clip on X, formerly Twitter, that featured Connecticut Sun player Alyssa Thomas, who is Black, calling out the unprecedented number of racist comments she said she has faced as the league has seen a record-breaking rise in viewership this 2024 season.
Reese, who is also Black, said that she had likewise experienced racist vitriol over the past two years, but was told to “save the tears” and “stop playing victim.”
In a follow-up post, she said that she will continue to speak out and use her “voice in the right way.” In another post, she accused the media of benefiting from her “pain.”
“For the past 2 years, the media has benefited from my pain & me being villainized to create a narrative,” she wrote. “They allowed this. This was beneficial to them. I sometimes share my experiences of things that have happened to me but I’ve also allowed this to happen to me for way too long and now other players in this league are dealing with & experiencing the same things.”
Reese expressed empathy for those who have encountered similar issues, sharing that she began her new weekly podcast, “Unapologetically Angel,” to “create the narrative of who I really am.”
“At the end of the day, I don’t want an apology nor do I think this will ever stop but something has to change,” she added on X.
On Wednesday, Thomas had said in a postgame interview after the Sun defeated the Indiana Fever — eliminating the team from the 2024 WNBA playoffs — that she’s seen a surge in racist comments from league fans on social media.
“In my 11-year career, I’ve never experienced the racial comments from the Indiana Fever fanbase,” she said about the Indianapolis-based franchise, which saw quite the boost in popularity with the addition of star rookie Caitlin Clark.
“I’ve never been called the things that I’ve been called on social media, and there’s no place for it,” Thomas said. “Basketball is headed in a great direction, but, nah, we don’t want fans that are going to degrade and call us racial names.”
Clark and Reese have been frequently pitted against each other since their college basketball days, but both players have publicly shut down rumors of a personal feud.
Many sports fans have called out online attacks against Reese, arguing that she has been harshly criticized for her trash talk during games, while white male players and white female players — such as Clark — are typically treated differently for similar conduct.
Fox Sports 1 show “Speak” co-host Joy Taylor said during an April broadcast that Reese “didn’t make herself the villain” in women’s basketball.
“She showed up unapologetically herself in the same way that men do all the time,” Taylor said. She also said that what Reese “experiences is not the same thing as what everyone is experiencing.”
The Sky player revealed publicly at the time that she had received death threats, among other types of online abuse.
During a press conference Friday, Clark condemned any racist comments from WNBA fans, calling the situation “definitely upsetting.”
“Those aren’t fans; those are trolls,” she said.
The WNBA on Wednesday released a statement saying it would “not tolerate racist, derogatory, or threatening comments made about players, teams and anyone affiliated with the league.”
The league said that it’s “actively monitoring threat-related activity” and would address the issue by taking “appropriate measures, to include involving law enforcement, as necessary.”
