WNBA’s Layshia Clarendon Shares Story Of ‘Top Surgery’ As Team, Union, Commissioner Show Support

Activist and New York Liberty Layshia Clarendon on Friday tweeted a story and photos of their “top surgery” and celebrated a message of strength for the trans community, writing, “we’ve always existed and no one can erase us.”

Clarendon, who identifies as trans and non-binary and uses she/her/they/them/he/him pronouns, was quickly met with support from across the women’s basketball community, including from their team, the New York Liberty, as well as the WNBA players’ union, WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert and numerous athletes across the league.

“We are so proud that Layshia is part of the WNBA and we know that their voice and continued advocacy will not only support and help honor and uplift many other non-binary and trans people,” Engelbert wrote in her Instagram story, “but also encourage empathy and understanding for the community across all levels of sport.”

In a statement, Anne Lieberman, the director of policy and programs at Athlete Ally, an advocacy group against homophobia and transphobia in sport, wrote: “We are proud today and every day to call Layshia Clarendon an Athlete Ally Ambassador. Their visibility as the WNBA’s first nonbinary, openly transgender athlete is nothing short of lifesaving.

“Layshia has continuously paved the way for pay equity, racial justice and LGBTQI+ inclusion within the WNBA and sports as a whole,” Lieberman added. “The support they’ve received from the league, teammates and the sport community sends a powerful message to society that trans and non-binary folks deserve to be safe, welcome and included in all areas of life.”

The WNBPA, where Clarendon serves as a vice president, released a statement calling Clarendon’s story empowering and that the union hoped it would “remind us that we will not be restrained by the many assumptions and stereotypes that seek to define us as girls or women.”

The Liberty lauded Clarendon’s courage and authenticity and called them “a proud embodiment of our belief that our strength lies in our truth and no one should live constrained by societal boundaries.”

Across the WNBA, players including Clarendon’s teammate, Amanda Zahui B., and Phoenix forward Brianna Turner, showed their support on social media as well.

Clarendon, who has long proudly and passionately advocated for gender expression in sport, admitted in their initial post that they were “debating sharing this joy.” But they were met with full-throated support from the entire WNBA community.

As Clarendon wrote in a recent Instagram post, “we all have masculinity and femininity inside of us and mine show up equally and wholly and fully.” This is, for Clarendon, a “free & euphoric” next step in the evolution of their relationship with gender, and one that comes with the full support of the sport behind it.