In the conversation about gender equality in sports, most of the attention is focused on the players. Sometimes the attention is directed at the coaches, but for the most part, referees have been left out of the conversation.
Which is why the courtside appearance of Danielle Scott and Angelica Suffren, two black women referees, at an NBA Summer League game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Miami Heat garnered so much attention.
First time I’ve ever seen two black women referee an NBA game of any kind. Violet Palmer would be proud Danielle Scott and Angelica Suffren reffing at the California Classic Summer League Lakers versus Heat. @TheUndefeated pic.twitter.com/0gyXL4DW7J
— Marc J. Spears (@MarcJSpearsESPN) July 4, 2018
Officiates are almost never paid attention to – unless they make a bad call – but this situation was different. Their inclusion means a lot to other women trying to stay close to the sport they’re passionate about and to female fans, who can see an instance of their sports knowledge respected by players, coaches and fans.
Women in sports are generally not treated the same as their male counterparts. They’re paid less and have less prominence. On this year’s Forbes’ ranking of highest-paid athletes, not a single woman was listed. Last year, Serena Williams ranked at the No. 51 spot, but likely fell off because of her maternity leave.
Popular question: "Why does it have to be about color?"
— Tomas Kassahun 🇪🇹 (@TomasKassahun) July 4, 2018
Answer: Because there was a time in history where it was unimaginable for black people (especially women) to have these opportunities. Every barrier shattered is a step forward, is a cause for celebration.
Happy 4th https://t.co/xFsHZ6rV5B
This is the first year the NBA has also recruited women to officiate their training ground program like the NBPA Top 100 Camp. Last year, women made up a third of the referees the NBA G League, their minor league basketball program.
One of the women, Jenna Schroeder, was a former college player who wanted to stay in the world of basketball after she stop playing. It’s the same sort of background expertise many male referees bring to the court, and now by training them through the NBA ranks, there’s a chance we’ll see many more women referees.
Before initiatives like this, women would either have to shelve their basketball career for good or compete for one of the highly coveted coaching jobs.
