Serena Williams might be one of the greatest tennis players to have ever picked up a racket, but the American is much more than that to the Black community in the United States of America. Time and again, Williams, along with her sister Venus Williams, has used her platform to speak up about the injustices facing the Black community in the US, giving her voice to causes across the country.
In 2020, the 23-time Grand Slam champion showcased that once again, coming in the backdrop of the Black Lives Matter movement spreading across the US like wildfire after George Floyd’s murder.
Speaking in an interview with Vogue, Serena Williams shared her opinion that the major catalyst for putting the limelight on crimes against the community was the rise in technology, which has helped unearth things that usually go unnoticed.
“Now, we as Black people have a voice – and technology has been a huge part of that. We see things that have been hidden for years; the things that we as people have to go through. This has been happening for years. People just couldn’t pull out their phones and video it before…” Serena Williams said.
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Williams believed that while non-Black Americans could not truly understand the seriousness of issues plaguing her fellow brethren, she was glad to see such things see the light of day after years of her trying to bring attention to them.
"At the end of May, I had so many people who were white writing to me saying, ‘I’m sorry for everything you’ve had to go through.’ I think for a minute they started – not to understand, because I don’t think you can understand – but they started to see. I was like: well, you didn’t see any of this before? I’ve been talking about this my whole career. It’s been one thing after another,” Serena Williams said.
The former World No. 1, as an entrepreneur, has ensured that there is always a place for diversity at her companies, insisting that her fashion labels, beauty firm and venture capitalist company also hold themselves to the same high standard.
Serena Williams: "Tennis is a small play in the whole scheme of things"
In the aforementioned interview, Serena Williams further continued, insisting that more attention needs to be given to women of color in particular, lamenting how society has let them down over the years and kept them from rising up.
"Tennis is a small play in the whole scheme of things. In this society, women are not taught or expected to be that future leader or future CEO. The narrative has to change," Serena Williams said.
Williams was also glad that she had never shied away from using her voice to sticking up for women, many of whom who would have never gotten support from a public figure otherwise.
"And maybe it doesn’t get better in time for me, but someone in my position can show women and people of colour that we have a voice, because Lord knows I use mine. I love sticking up for people and supporting women. Being the voice that millions of people don’t have," she added.
Williams retired from tennis in 2022, appearing at the US Open for her final tournament and reaching as far as the third round.
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