Here’s an article written in February, 1998, that discusses the breakthrough hiring of Violet Palmer in the NBA. And it was a breakthrough. She became the first woman official in an all-male sporting league – not not just for basketball but for any of the major pro-sports.
But that’s not why I linked to the article. I liked it to point out something she is quoted as saying.
At one point, the interviewer mentions that the men’s game is faster and is focused more on action above the rim. To which Violet responds, “One thing we always have to remember is that basketball is basketball and that’s where our training comes in.”
After watching Violet officiate games for 12 years, I think I can honestly say that she never received the training that she alluded to way back in 1998.
The other thing that strikes me about this article is this quote: “Confrontation is part of being a referee. If [the players] cross a line they’re not supposed to, then they’ll receive a technical foul — like any player would.”
I’ve always thought that Violet has been a little quick to pass out technicals and I’ve always had a sneaking suspicion that being a female in a male dominated league might have had something to do with it. And reading this article seems to confirm or at least give some credence to my theory. She says that if the players cross a line, then they’ll get a technical. And she throws in the part about “like any player would”. Almost like she knew that she’d be passing out technicals as a way to exert her power over all the males in her league and threw in that last part so that it would seem that what she was doing was within the confines of the NBA rules.
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F VP