The Mystics lent their support to the fined teams and spoke out against recent police shootings on Friday night. (Via Twitter)

The WNBA has reversed its decision to fine several teams for wearing black t-shirts as a response to recent police shootings, president Lisa Borders announced Saturday.

While Borders initially said that the WNBA expected teams to comply with uniform guidelines and would be fined accordingly, she later tweeted: “Appreciate our players expressing themselves on matters important to them. Rescinding imposed fines to show them even more support.”

A day after the WNBA fined the New York Liberty, Indiana Fever, and Phoenix Mercury for wearing black warm-up shirts, the Washington Mystics lent their support before and after their Friday match with the Los Angeles Sparks. They wore regulation compliant black warm-up gear, instead of their usual red and blue, and refused to answer questions about basketball in post-game interviews.

The Mystics’ Tierra Ruffin-Pratt helped organize the media black-out, according to ThinkProgress’ Lindsay Gibbs. Ruffin-Pratt’s cousin, Julian Dawkins, was shot and killed by an Arlington deputy sheriff the same day that she made the team. Craig Patterson, the shooter, was sentenced to six years in the case.

Monumental Sports and Entertainment backed the players’ efforts, saying “we respect the right of our players to peacefully protest and appreciate them doing so in a manner that promotes dialogue and understanding. We hope that these conversations will help our communities grow and move towards more compassion and unity.”

The initial fines were $5,000 per team, and $500 per player, for altering uniforms. The Associated Press points out that first-year players only earn around $40,000 a year, meaning the fine amounts to about an 1/80th of a rookie’s salary.

The NBA didn’t fine players who similarly protested the shooting of Trayvon Martin, a fact that Knicks player Carmelo Anthony pointed out to the New York Post. “A bunch of teams did it,” Anthony told the paper. “Everyone has their own freedom of speech if they decide to use the platform. I don’t see no reason for anybody to get fined. We did it. The NBA did it. The NBA was very supportive. I don’t see any difference in this matter. Right now the players have a very strong stance in what they believe in right now. I don’t think anyone should be fighting that at this moment.”

The WNBA is suspending play until the end of August for the Olympics. “While we expect players to comply with league rules and uniform guidelines, we also understand their desire to use their platform to address important societal issues,” Borders said in a statement. “We plan to use this time to work with our players and their union on ways for the players to make their views known to their fans and the public and we have informed the players that we are rescinding the recently-imposed fines.”