The New York Liberty refused a paid scoreboard message from a woman supporting the XX-XY movement — then displayed pro-transgender messages during the same game.
Julie Potter, a lesbian hip-hop performer, says the WNBA team tried to rewrite her message after accepting her $100 payment for display at Barclays Center during the Liberty’s game against the Indiana Fever.
Potter requested the following message: “Thank you Jennifer Sey! XX-XY Athletics will Save the Day!”
The payment and message were accepted, Potter said. But the day before the game, the team contacted her and said they would not display what she had paid for.
“Thank you Jennifer Sey, thank you for all you do for XX-XY Athletics.”
That’s what the sales department offered instead — a rewrite Potter never approved.
She told them if they wouldn’t display the message she paid for, she wanted a refund and cancellation.
Despite rejecting Potter’s message, the Liberty had no problem displaying pro-transgender messages during the game, according to OutKick.
The team told media they only want “positive” messages on the scoreboard.
“Our scoreboard messages are limited to positive, celebratory content, and submissions that may intentionally or unintentionally violate that spirit are not eligible for display,” the Liberty sales team told OutKick in an email.
Potter calls it censorship.
“Unfortunately, this is censorship. My message was approved, and payment was accepted. You then changed it without giving me any opportunity to revise or respond, and you did so inside your own 48-hour window,” Potter said.
“Why would I pay to let you speak for me?” she asked.
Potter said she has no clue which word or sentiment triggered the team’s reversal.
“I don’t know what that means. What did I do wrong? I want a code. I want a violation. I read everything. I read their website. I made sure to follow the rules,” Potter explained.
“I said nothing derogatory. I didn’t even say, ‘Save women’s sports.’ I just said, ‘Shout out to the CEO of a dope company who’s changing the world from my perspective.’ That’s obviously not their perspective, but is this America? Can we have different perspectives?”
XX-XY Athletics is a sportswear company started by former Olympic gymnast and one-time Levi Strauss & Co. brand president Jennifer Sey. She has used her platform to oppose transgender athletes playing in women’s sports.
Potter added that she is a long-time WNBA fan and is not trying to capitalize on current controversies. But she is now more of a fan for Fever star Sophie Cunningham.
“I’m a woman loyalist, okay? So, I’m there for Sophie. Where Sophie’s going, I’m going where the Fever’s going,” Potter said.
She insisted Cunningham’s recent fame is good for the league.
“Of course it’s good for the league. We’re women supporting women playing a woman’s sport. How is this not good? Every Fever game is selling out,” she said.
The New York Liberty showed three messages on the scoreboard at halftime in support of trans people. https://t.co/6TXbJPmtro pic.twitter.com/1iyBDwdKFW
— Jackson Thompson (@JackThompsonFOX) August 23, 2026
