The New York Liberty displayed multiple messages supporting transgender fans on their scoreboard during halftime of a game against the Indiana Fever on Saturday. The messages appeared the day after the team refunded a fan whose submitted scoreboard message was altered by the team.
Outside the Barclays Center, a large group of transgender activists held a counter-protest. These activists declined to be interviewed by Fox News Digital, surrounding the reporter and placing flags and signs in their face. Chants of "trans lives matter!" were heard, and a photographer's glasses were taken from their head during the encounter. New York City Police intervened to escort the reporter out for safety reasons.
During halftime of the Liberty's 109-102 victory, three messages were shown on the scoreboard. One read, "Big welcome to the NY Liberty transgender fan community! So excited to be here with you all!!" Another stated, "Welcome Trans Liberty fans! You are loved and you belong!" The third message said, "Hey trans fans! Glad you're here! Go Liberty!"
These messages coincided with the halftime program where hip-hop artist Julie Potter had expected her own submission to be displayed. Potter purchased 25 tickets and paid an additional $100 for a custom scoreboard message. Her original submission, "Thank you Jennifer Sey! XX-XY Athletics will Save the Day!!", was altered by the team to "Thank you Jennifer Sey, thank you for all you do for XX-XY Athletics." The team later refunded Potter's fee after she objected to the edit.
The Liberty sales team informed Potter that scoreboard messages are limited to "positive, celebratory content," and submissions that "may intentionally or unintentionally violate that spirit are not eligible for display." The team has not provided further explanation for why Potter's original wording was deemed ineligible. Potter still attended the game with other women's sports activists.
Saturday's event marked a significant turnout for both supporters of WNBA player Caitlin Clark's critic, Sophie Cunningham, and the pro-transgender counter-protesters. The counter-protesters arrived with large flags, signs, and bubble blowers. When Fox News Digital attempted to interview the pro-trans protesters, none agreed, and they then surrounded the reporter, waving flags and placing a sticker on his back. The protesters chanted for nearly a minute while shouting over the reporter's questions. An ambassador representing the protesters stated that they had agreed not to do media interviews as a gesture of solidarity.
Caitlin Cunningham addressed the demonstrations prior to the game, suggesting that the attention generated has been positive by drawing more fans to WNBA games and increasing visibility for the league. "I think anytime you can get more eyes on the W, that’s an awesome thing, because then that inspires other young kids that maybe have never seen the game or heard about the game or been to a game, they get that experience," she said.