Mayfield: Now is the perfect time to build Sue Bird a statue

Basketball superstar Sue Bird has deserved a statue for a long time.

She is without peer in her league and her sport, and in the Pacific Northwest? Name another Seattle sports icon who has led a professional team to four championship wins, earned five Olympic gold medals, and stayed a genuinely kind and good person who is deeply involved in our community.

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I’m waiting.

Now Google statues in Seattle. I see Ken Griffey Jr., I see Jimi Hendrix, I see George Washington, and of course, Vladimir Lenin.

Look for the women on the list. There’s the nameless “Dancer in a flat hat” and the beer company’s “Lady Rainier” and, of course, “Rachel.” She’s a pig, a literal pig.

Finally, tell me how many of those with statues commemorate people who are or were openly LGBTQ+ trailblazers in life and sport.

I’m not accusing anyone of anything, but I am pointing out how right this moment truly is.

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We know how to honor historic folks in this city. We have some brilliant and talented artists and sculptors. We know how to combine the two in beautiful and moving ways.

Sue Bird is nothing short of a historic figure. She is a living legend. Sure, she has a bobblehead or two, but she needs something bigger and in bronze outside Climate Pledge Arena for all to see for a long, long time.

No more waiting. Now is the time. It is her turn.

Build Sue Bird a statue.

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