Serena and Venus Williams Boycott Indian Wells

March 17, 2001. Serena Williams is getting booed. She’s trying to prepare to face Kim Clijsters in the finals of the prestigious annual tennis tournament at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden, but when her name is announced before the match, 14,000-plus audience members begin loudly jeering her every move. This angry mob mentality continues throughout the match, while her older sister, Venus, and father, Richard, can only watch from the stands.

Today, an all-time great, at just 19 years old, faces the most hostile playing environment of her career. Why did this American crowd turn on Serena Williams and her family? And was she able to rise above the noise and win?

Special thanks to our guests: Merlisa Lawrence Corbett, longtime sports journalist and author of “Serena Williams: Tennis Champion, Sports Legend, and Cultural Heroine,” and John Thrasher, A+E senior producer and owner of @SerenaNews.

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