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Alveda King, the 75-year-old civil rights activist and niece of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., rejected a USA Today sports column this week that connected Caitlin Clark to violence against Black and lesbian WNBA players through a reference to Emmett Till’s murder. Speaking to OutKick on Friday, King characterized the piece by columnist Nancy Armour as textbook race-baiting designed to inflame rather than inform.
King, a Fox News contributor, criticized what she views as a predictable tactic employed by left-leaning media outlets. “What people have learned to do is throw out inflammatory, emotional phrases that will make people emotional and forget how to think,” she said, adding that invoking Till’s name served no legitimate purpose in the Clark debate.
Armour’s column drew scrutiny for suggesting Clark’s play and demeanor encourage her supporters to harass WNBA players. King noted that Armour has previously blamed Clark for incidents involving other players, including a 2024 piece following a confrontation with Indiana Fever guard DiJonai Carrington that left the player with a black eye.
When OutKick asked whether Armour or USA Today editors had sought King’s perspective as a civil rights authority, King said they had not. She expressed openness to engaging with the publication but indicated no contact had been made to balance the narrative or provide alternative viewpoints.
In a statement Thursday, Armour acknowledged making “an inartful comparison” to Till’s 1955 murder but maintained her central argument. She stated that her “point stands” regarding what she described as a historical pattern of perceived threats to white women being weaponized against African Americans and the dangers that poses to Black league players.
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