Serena is a giant on and off the tennis court. Perhaps the greatest female tennis player of all time is socially conscious as a black woman which endears her to the black community even more.

After winning her first round match Monday against Margarita Gasparyan of Russia during the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Championships, Williams discussed her refusal to play in a match in South Carolina under the Confederate flag.

Serena Williams shared her feelings about the Charleston massacre, calling the June 17 shooting of nine black worshipers by an alleged white supremacist “unspeakably sad,” and recalling how she refused to play in South Carolina while the Confederate flag flew above the state legislature.

In 2000, Williams pulled out of the Family Circle Cup in South Carolina in support of the NAACP’s call for a boycott over the Confederate flag flying above the state house dome.

The flag was eventually moved to a monument in the grounds later that year.

“I wouldn’t go to Charleston until the flag was removed. Once it was, I went there, and only after the Confederate flag was removed,” Williams said after beating Margarita Gasparyan of Russia in the first round.

“What happened in Charleston is a tragedy yet again to our country, the United States. It’s really unspeakable how sad it is and how much of a toll it can have.

“But you just have to continue to have faith, continue to believe, continue to be positive, continue to help people to the best of your ability.”

Williams said she was proud of how the community reacted to the Charleston massacre.

“Everyone was so positive and a lot of people went there. Obviously Obama. It was a very emotional time for many people of all races in the United States, and outside the United States,” she said.

SOUND OFF: Isn’t it great some of our superstars are not afraid to stand up for our social issues?

Source: EurWeb.com