The WNBA is expected to resume today (Friday) after the postponement of six games originally scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday.
WNBA games this week were postponed as a part of a mass protest throughout professional sports teams over the police shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin last weekend. The initial decision to not play on Wednesday came after the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks chose not play against the Orlando Magic in playoff game five. The rest of the teams expected to play that night, chose to follow suit and were all postponed.
Executive Committee President Nneka Ogwumike initially mentioned Friday games would resume during a roundtable held on Thursday. “It’s important to note this is not a strike, this is not a boycott,” Ogwumike said on Thursday. “This is affirmatively a day of reflection, a day of informed action and mobilization. We recommitted to the justice movement, the platform for our advocacy, and the ‘Say Her Name’ campaign.”
Ogwumike spoke on behalf of the league and called for Wisconsin attorney general Josh Kaul to investigate the officers involved in the shooting of Blake. She also called for Kentucky attorney general Daniel Cameron to arrest the police officers involved in Taylor’s death, which has yet to take place.
The WNBA has been at the forefront on the fight for social justice for this 2020 season. The league has been adamant about their commitment to honoring Breonna Taylor by wearing her name on the back of their jersey’s throughout the season. Taylor was killed in March by police in Louisville after a raid on her home went south. The campaign “Say Her Name” has continuously been pushed and promoted to bring light and awareness to women who have been killed by police.
Here are the games that have been postponed:
Wednesday: Atlanta Dream vs. Washington Mystics, Los Angeles Sparks vs. Minnesota Lynx, Connecticut Sun vs. Phoenix Mercury.
Thursday: Chicago Sky vs. Indiana Fever, Dallas Wings vs. New York Liberty, Las Vegas Aces vs. Seattle Storm.
The WNBA season is expected to wrap up their regular season on September 12. It is unknown at this time how the postponement of these six games will be handled.
