Pat McAfee and Caitlin Clark (Photos via Getty Images)
A prominent women’s group has joined the calls for Pat McAfee to be fired from ESPN after the former NFL punter referred to Caitlin Clark as a “White B-” during his show on Monday.
McAfee was pushing back on the notion that the new rookie class is responsible for the uptick in WNBA interest, pointing out that it’s solely due to Clark’s arrival. But, in doing so, he made a regrettable mistake.
The popular show host has since apologized for his ill-advised verbiage, revealing he reached out to Clark, who accepted the apology and was keen on moving forward.
However, UltraViolet, a group that describes itself as a leading gender justice organization, feels the apology is “insufficient” and wants him dropped from the network.
Ultraviolet released a very lengthy statement on the matter. In it, they called for Pat McAfee to be fired by ESPN. They also urged the network to take the necessary steps to ensure that “sexist and racist remarks” like this are never made on air, while also asking that they “do a better job covering women’s sports in an unbiased way.”
Here’s the statement from Ultraviolet in its entirety:
“Pat McAfee’s apology for his racist and sexist comments about Caitlin Clark and other WNBA players is insufficient,” a statement from the group reads. “The simple reality is that even if McAfee meant what he said as a compliment – he should know that referring to any professional athlete with a misogynistic or racial epithet is never a compliment and shouldn’t be done.
“But it’s about more than just the specific words he chose to describe Caitlin Clark. His entire segment, which he has said he stands behind and doesn’t apologize for, was used to downplay the contributions of other WNBA rookies including Angel Reese, and perpetuate a dangerous narrative rooted in misogynoir that the WNBA, a league dominated by Black women for years is being “saved” by Clark, when both profits and viewership have been on the rise prior to the start of this season.
“Coupled with McAfee’s pattern of promoting problematic falsehoods – including platforming Aaron Rodgers and allowing him to spread conspiracy theories about the coronavirus or Jeffrey Epstein – demonstrate that McAfee simply does not have the necessary judgment that sports fans deserve.
“Not only does McAfee deserve to be fired, but Disney needs to ensure that ESPN commits to a culture where commentators will no longer be allowed to spew sexist and racist remarks. That should be the minimum standard that sports fans should expect from their commentators and that ESPN and Disney should expect from their hosts. It is hard to ask for anything less when we recall that ESPN is the same network that suspended Jemele Hill for calling President Trump a white supremacist.
“We urge ESPN and Disney to fire Pat McAfee and take action to clean up its news room and frankly do a better job of covering women’s sports in an unbiased way.”
Pat McAfee Really Stepped In It This Time
Pat McAfee lives on the edge of the edge, and many believe that he went too far this time, though his message was well-intentioned.
This is hardly his first controversy since he switched to ESPN, yet the network has always backed him.
It’s unknown how they will handle this latest incident, having remained silent on the matter thus far.
