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Hidden Figures: Violet Palmer #BlackHERstoryMonth 23/28

1,478 views · Published 23 February 2017 · 7:56 · Indexed 22 September 2026

Channel: Sensei Aishitemasu · 2017 · Entertainment

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Violet Palmer was a referee for the NBA and WNBA (before her retirement in 2016), the first female ref in the NBA, and the first female official to reach the highest competitive tier in a major U.S. professional sport. 

Born in Compton, California in 1964, Palmer hailed from the same neighborhood as Venus and Serena Williams and grew up playing basketball. She played point guard on the 1985 and 1986 NCAA Division II women's championship teams at Cal Poly Pomona, and was recruited by the NBA in 1996 after officiating NCAA Division I and II college games as well as NBA pre-season and exhibition games. Palmer made history as the first woman referee in the NBA when she officiated the NBA season opener between the Vancouver Grizzlies and the Dallas Mavericks on October 31, 1997. 

She went on to officiate hundreds of games over 19 seasons before her retirement, including play-off games and All-Star Games, which are reserved for only the best referees (she is the first, and only, woman to officiate an All-Star Game in any of the four major U.S. sports). When she married her longtime partner in 2014, Palmer also became the first openly gay NBA officiant. 

She currently serves as coordinator of women's basketball officials for the West Coast Conference and coordinator of women's basketball officials for the Western Athletic Conference.

#HiddenFigures #BlackHERstoryMonth

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Links: 

VIOLET PALMER - First Female Referee, NBA:
http://www.makers.com/violet-palmer

'Violet Palmer paved the way for female NBA referees:'
http://www.newsday.com/sports/columnists/barbara-barker/violet-palmer-paved-the-way-for-female-nba-referees-1.9915072

'Violet Palmer: NBA’s Only Female Referee:'
https://newsone.com/2872723/violet-palmer-nba/

'NBA official Violet Palmer worked hard to blaze a trail for herself, others:'
http://www.dailybulletin.com/sports/20130918/nba-official-violet-palmer-worked-hard-to-blaze-a-trail-for-herself-others

'Violet Palmer, NBA's first female referee, publicly announces she is gay:'
http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nba-ball-dont-lie/violet-palmer--nba-s-first-female-referee--publicly-announces-she-is-gay--will-marry-partner-friday-165227559.html

'Violet Palmer, the NBA's first female referee, retires:'
http://sports.yahoo.com/news/violet-palmer-the-nbas-first-female-referee-retires-191649857.html

'Violet Palmer, NBA’s first female referee, retires from on-court duties:'
http://www.excellesports.com/news/violet-palmer-nba-referee-retires/

'NBA'S FIRST FEMALE REFEREE, VIOLET PALMER, RETIRES FROM ON-COURT WORK:'
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2665293-nbas-first-female-referee-violet-palmer-retires-from-on-court-work

Violet Palmer (Wikipedia):
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Violet_Palmer

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