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Riley Gaines Goes Off On WNBA, Says Staffer Tried To Take Away Sophie Cunningham Sign
The WNBA’s double standard on free speech is officially out of bounds.
Women’s sports advocate Riley Gaines pulled no punches on Monday night, telling Fox News that league handlers tried to silence her support for Indiana Fever star Sophie Cunningham. Appearing on “Hannity,” Gaines said that arena officials asked her to put down a benign, completely non-political sign praising Cunningham while Left-wing propaganda was prominently displayed on the arena’s Jumbotron.
“The league often says they have a problem with people like Sophie bringing politics into sports. The league doesn’t have a problem with politics in sports. They have a problem with conservative politics in sports,” Gaines told host Sean Hannity.
Gaines recounted sitting in the Target Center during a Minnesota Lynx home game holding a small poster that simply read, “Sophie, thank you — a girl mom.” Despite strictly adhering to arena rules, an official approached Gaines and requested that she put the sign away.
Yet, as Gaines pointed out, Minnesota coach Cheryl Reeve strolled the sidelines wearing a “Trans Kids Belong” shirt while others wore pro-trans shirts featuring an image of a knife even as the arena’s Jumbotron repeatedly highlighted fans draped in Pride and trans flags. “If Protect Women’s Sports is deemed political like they say, then so is Trans Kids Belong,” Gaines slammed.
After Gaines pushed back, she said she was ultimately allowed to keep the sign displayed, and the arena staffer returned and apologized.
The WNBA finds itself engulfed in an explosive culture war sparked by Cunningham, who has spoken out against allowing men to compete in women’s athletics. Cunningham ignited the firestorm by telling ESPN she wants to “protect young girls in a locker room,” later doubling down on Instagram with a blunt message to her critics: “I said what I said.”
While Cunningham’s common-sense stance has earned her praise from high-profile figures, including Gaines and White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, it has drawn intense hostility from leftist fans and league insiders. Gaines noted that Cunningham was relentlessly booed by the Minnesota crowd every time she stepped onto the hardwood.
Meanwhile, WNBA leaders continue to hide behind corporate double-talk. Asked point-blank about men in female sports, Fever head coach Stephanie White offered a classic corporate dodge, claiming she wasn’t “educated enough from a scientific standpoint.”
The hostility has even boiled over into the stands. During a recent Fever road trip to Seattle, Storm co-owner Celeste Keaton was suspended from attending her team’s next five home games after launching an expletive-laden tirade against two 16-year-old female fans wearing gear in support of Cunningham’s position.
Despite the intimidation tactics, Gaines insists that Cunningham remains unshakable and uncancelable.