Violet Palmer Interview: The Untold Story of NBA's First Female Referee

Violet Palmer recalls growing up with encouraging and strict parents, playing sports with her younger brother, receiving a basketball scholarship to Cal Poly Pomona, how she got into refereeing, and eventually officiating Women's and Men’s Division I college basketball. Palmer discusses becoming the first female referee in the NBA, dealing with sexism, not taking any backlash personally, earning players respect, sportsmanship, and the importance of hard work and a fair playing field. Violet Palmer was born on July 20, 1964 in Lynwood, California. Palmer played point guard for Compton High School’s women’s basketball team. She earned her B.A. degree in recreation administration from California Polytechnic University Pomona, where she also led the women’s basketball team to two NCAA Division II championships in 1985 and 1986. After graduating from California Polytechnic University Pomona in 1987, Palmer worked for Placentia Recreation Department, where she began refereeing high school basketball games. In 1991, she officiated her first Division I Women’s basketball game and officiated the NCAA Women’s Final Four from 1994 to 1997. In 1995, Palmer began training as an official for the NBA. In 1997, Palmer officiated the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) championship during the association’s inaugural season. That same year, Palmer made history as the first woman to referee an NBA game. She became the first woman to oversee a postseason game for the NBA in 2006 in a matchup between the Indiana Pacers and the New Jersey Nets. She became the first woman to officiate an All-Star Game in any major United States sport, when she officiated the 2014 NBA All-Star Game at Smoothie King Center in New Orleans. Palmer retired as a referee from the NBA in 2016. Over the course of her NBA career, Palmer officiated 919 NBA games. Palmer was also the first openly gay referee in NBA history. Palmer received many awards and honors during her career, including being named a member of the NCAA Division II 40th Anniversary Tribute Team. She was also honored with the 2013 WNBA Boost Mobile Pioneer Award, and served on the board of the National Association of Sports Officials. In 1999, Palmer was named Naismith Women’s College Official of the Year. Palmer and her wife, Tanya Stine, have three children. From the 2013 PBS Documentary “Makers: Women Who Make America”, examines how women have helped shape America over the past 150 years, striving for a full and fair share of political power and economic opportunity. Subscribe for access to never-before-seen conversations from society’s most inspirational figures, giving insight into the lives and events that shaped our culture and history. Learn more about our work and how to support our mission here: https://www.lifestories.org/. For the latest interviews, series, and films from Life Stories, visit our other channel:    / @lifestoriesinterviews   Follow us on Instagram:   / lifestoriesinterviews   Violet Palmer, Retired NBA Referee, First Woman To Officiate An NBA Game Chapters: 00:00 Intro 00:07 Early childhood 02:12 Parents 04:54 A girl’s life 06:21 Sports 08:35 Basketball 13:45 Title IX 14:58 Coach May 16:43 Coaching 18:22 Refereeing 24:57 Facing animosity 28:47 Joining the old boy network 31:23 No second guessing 32:19 First NBA game 35:22 Split second decisions 36:25 Winning over critics 41:23 Making calls 45:49 Earning respect 52:20 Dee Kantner 54:09 Career 54:55 Basics Referee School 56:56 Following the rules 1:00:35 Marriage 1:04:28 Work-life balance 1:05:52 Feminism 1:07:08 Life lessons from sports 1:10:46 Post-game routine 1:12:38 Issues facing women 1:14:08 Women in sports 1:15:21 Q&A ©Kunhardt Productions & McGee Media. All rights reserved. #VioletPalmer #theinterviewarchive