Brianna Turner Just Exposed the Deep Hypocrisy Behind the WNBA’s New ‘USA 250’ All-Star Patches

Las Vegas Aces forward and WNBPA treasurer Brianna Turner is not feeling the WNBA‘s proposal to add “USA 250” patches to every player’s All-Star jersey.

Turner took to social media to call out the deep irony of forcing WNBA All-Stars to wear the patch, which celebrates the upcoming 250th birthday of the United States.

“The irony of all the USA 250 stuff is that the vast majority of people in America today would not have been ‘free’ 250 years ago,” Turner’s post read. “Whoever called for the WNBA All-Star uniforms to have the USA 250 patch should have thought that through, considering no WNBA players would have been free 250 years ago. The majority wouldn’t even have had their freedom 100 years ago.”

Turner’s critique cuts straight to the core of an ongoing issue in professional sports, how many marketing campaigns prioritize shallow patriotism over historical reality.

By forcing a league made up predominantly of Black and LGBTQ+ women to wear a blanket celebration of 1776, the league completely ignored the systemic chattel slavery and disenfranchisement that defined that era.

As her posts continued, Turner made it clear that she believes corporate profits are driving the league’s bottom line.

“Yesss, I know this was probably a financial decision at the end of the day, but still,” Turner continued. “We are some of the most elite female athletes. 250 years ago, we would have been breeders or in the fields working all day. Be so serious rn.”

The pushback comes after Sportico reported that the WNBA planned to have its stars don the red, white, and blue patches during the upcoming All-Star Game on July 25 in Chicago. However, the league appears to be keeping its options open following the player backlash.

According to Newsweek, a WNBA spokesperson stated that “nothing has been finalized at this time” as the league explores how best to mark the milestone.

While the White House and Fanatics launched the joint commemorative patch initiative in January alongside multiple sports leagues, the WNBA was notably absent from the initial lineup. Other teams have already adopted the branding; during the NBA Finals, both the New York Knicks and the San Antonio Spurs took the court wearing the logos.

Promoted by President Donald Trump, the “America 250” initiative is designed to celebrate the nation’s founding and civic ideals through nationwide programming, festivals and sports partnerships.