Aliyah Boston responds to ESPY snub
South Carolina women’s basketball star Aliyah Boston released a statement on Wednesday addressing her snub from an in-person invitation to the 2022 ESPYs.
The awards show is set to take place at 8:00 p.m. EST at The Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. The ESPYs includes a category for “Best College Athlete, Women’s Sports”.
That award, for which Boston was a nominee, is not being handed out during the televised broadcast. The winner was instead revealed on Tuesday, and Oklahoma softball standout Jocelyn Alo was the recipient.
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Both head coach Dawn Staley and Boston’s agent, Jade-Li English of Klutch Sports, took to social media on Sunday to discuss Boston’s lack of an invitation to Los Angeles.
The list of awards captured this year by the Gamecock junior is extensive: Honda Cup Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year, SEC Female Athlete of the Year, National Player of the Year, Lisa Leslie Center of the Year, All-SEC First Team, SEC Defensive Player of the Year, and Final Four Most Outstanding Player, to name several.
In a statement given to The State, ESPN said the following:
“We have the utmost respect for Aliyah Boston, Dawn Staley and the South Carolina Gamecocks,” ESPN said in a statement. “Due to both COVID restrictions and a new venue with much less seating capacity than previous shows, ‘The 2022 ESPYs’ prioritized athlete invitations to focus on specific awards that will be handed out during the broadcast.”
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Boston said that she actually was invited to the ceremony, but only after backlash on social media. The star player also took issue with the overall decision not to televise the award.
“To be nominated for an ESPY this year meant the world to me and my family,” Boston said in her statement on Wednesday. “While it hurt finding out that they wouldn’t be televising the category despite it being televised last year, and no intentions for me to attend…it hurt more to see ESPN change course and invite me only after social media caught wind of it. Respectfully, I declined.”
“I’m used to this,” Boston continued. “It’s just another moment when the disrespect and erasure of Black women is brushed off as a ‘mistake’ or an ‘oversight’ Another excuse for why our milestones and accomplishments aren’t a ‘priority’ this time, even now, 50 years after Title IX.”
“To every Black girl and every Black woman: no one can take away what God has in store for us. You matter. You are valuable. You are a priority. You are seen, and you are loved – don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.”
