The WNBA brings a lot of joy and excitement to fans and athletes, but all too often there is another side to the league that, unfortunately, still rears its ugly head: players (and their families) are often on the receiving end of racist, sexist, and homophobic messages, as well as threats to their safety or the safety of their loved ones. Brittney and her wife Cherelle Griner are often targeted by especially deplorable people with apparently not much else to do with their time than go after people who are just living their lives.
Cherelle shared a few of the messages the two have received of late via Instagram on Wednesday. In one, a person with the username Xyxytet (presumably a fake account), writes that they hope "ur kid will die from brain cancer" and "disgusting lesbian b---ches u deserve death and nothing else."
Typically, drawing even more attention to these messages can create an even bigger problem, but Cherelle is one of many players or player family members who have raised awareness of what's going on behind the scenes, and more needs to be done by all of us — fans, teams, and the media, in addition to the people running the social media platforms we all use — to put an end to such behavior.
WNBA players and their families should not have to face harassment
It is one thing to have a valid critique or criticism of how a player is performing on the court, or to express an opinion about what a team could do better — but the messages Cherelle, Brittney, and so many others in the league are receiving is not that. These are missiles full of hate, fired off from behind anonymous profiles (because the people writing the messages are too scared to stand by what they're saying — it's easy to be threatening when you're too scared to show your face) and from behind screens.
The Griners have done nothing to warrant treatment like this. In fact, Brittney Griner should be seen as a hero for all Americans — she survived months-long detention in Russia, and has become an advocate for other Americans and people who are being unjustly detained. As for WNBA fans — and many of the people who send these disgusting DMs still somehow describe themselves as fans of the league — she's one of the best in the league, and has so far offered us an extraordinary career to enjoy.
There is no easy solution to a problem like what the Griners face. Social media platforms all too frequently fail to protect those among us who need it the most. While great strides have been made in terms of the physical safety of players at games and hotels, hopefully more can be done for players in the social media realm, too.