Brittney Griner, a star player for the Atlanta Dream, opted out of a speaking engagement in Maryland after a troubling note was found on her hotel room door. The note, which had the phrase ‘gay baby jail’ scrawled on tape, is associated with meme culture in gaming.

The hotel management assured organizers that the incident was taken lightly. According to Women Grow’s CEO Chanda Macias, Griner felt uncomfortable due to potentially threatening content discovered in her room.

“Brittney Griner arrived to be with us but felt unsafe because of threatening objects and words left inside her hotel room. For her safety, she chose to return home,” she stated.

The incident raised concerns, prompting local police investigations to establish the circumstances surrounding the note and its implications. Griner temporarily returns home after a significant ordeal, having previously endured a near-year-long detention in Russia in 2022.

Griner was set to participate in the Women Grow 2025 Leadership Summit, which took place from February 17-18.