WNBA admits Atlanta Dream security was wrong to force mom, daughter to cover shirts supporting Sophie Cunningham, women’s rights

Kasey and her daughter Annie had paid approximately $1,000 each for floor seats to watch the Fever defeat the Dream and attend in support of Fever guard Sophie Cunningham, who has publicly advocated for keeping biological males out of women's sports. "We were made to cover up our XX/XY shirts at this game," Kasey said after the game. "They gave us t-shirts during overtime and told us we had to leave or cover our shirts. This just happened."

"We did nothing. We were just sitting there. I didn't make signs. I wanted to make signs, but I didn't," she added.

The pair said they were given Atlanta Dream shirts during overtime and faced a choice between putting them over their clothing or being escorted from the arena. They complied in order to watch the remainder of the game.

Kasey said another spectator wearing a shirt supporting transgender participation had alerted security about them after that fan was also instructed to cover her message. "She shouldn't have to zip up," Kasey said, objecting to security censoring either side of the dispute.

XX-XY Athletics founder Jennifer Sey said the pro-transgender message had been visible during the game, including on the arena's Jumbotron, and questioned why the mother and daughter's shirts were targeted. XX-XY Athletics subsequently accused the league of "trying to cover up the truth" and encouraged supporters to continue wearing the shirts to WNBA games.

By Monday, the WNBA conceded that its security personnel should never have ordered the fans to conceal their clothing. "The WNBA is aware of interactions at (Sunday) night's game in Atlanta in which fans were asked by league security to cover their shirts," the league said in a statement. "This should not have happened."

The Atlanta Dream also distanced itself from the decision, saying team personnel had no role in the security action. "The Atlanta Dream believes in creating a safe and inclusive environment for everyone. Unfortunately, at last night's game, WNBA security took actions that fell short of that standard," the Dream said. "At no point was Dream personnel involved in the decisions made by WNBA security."

During a July Seattle Storm game against the Fever, two 16-year-old girls wearing XX-XY Athletics shirts and displaying a sign reading "Thank you, Sophie, for speaking up for girls!" said they were confronted by Storm minority co-owner Celeste Keaton.

One of the teens said Keaton told them, "Jesus loves everyone," before saying, "I hope Jesus can forgive you for what sin you've done" and calling them "f*cking insane." One of the girls was reportedly reduced to tears.

Storm majority owner Ginny Gilder subsequently apologized for the incident, saying, "We are aware one of our co-owners made comments to two fans in attendance at last night's game. We apologize that this happened. Everyone who attends a Storm game deserves to feel welcome, and we remain committed to creating an inclusive environment where every fan is treated with respect." Keaton was later handed a five-game ban following the confrontation.

Cunningham has emerged as one of the WNBA's most prominent voices opposing biological males competing against women and girls, while rejecting accusations that her position is motivated by animosity toward transgender people. "I got a lot of negative feedback about me hating trans. And I'm like, 'I never once said that,'" Cunningham said.

"I think that I am here to extend love. But I also think with that love is truth, being honest. And I want to protect young girls in a locker room, or young girls in sport who shouldn't have to go against biological men," she said. "I'm very much in the middle. I agree with things on both sides, disagree with things on both sides. And that's all I've ever said about my political beliefs. But people love to assume."

The controversy has forced the WNBA itself to confront questions about transgender eligibility. League presidents and general managers recently participated in an emergency task force meeting to discuss transgender athletes but came out of the meeting unable to define what a woman is. Following the meeting, the WNBA said discussions on transgender athletes were ongoing and that it would continue engaging league stakeholders in the coming weeks and months. The league said there were "no immediate eligibility matters affecting the WNBA" while denouncing what it characterized as "bad-faith efforts" to demean or marginalize people.

Commissioner Cathy Engelbert previously acknowledged in a memo that questions surrounding transgender participation had become increasingly prominent, calling the issue "complex and nuanced." The WNBA's collective bargaining agreement restricts participation to women but does not specifically define the term or establish detailed rules concerning biological sex and gender identity.