by Jack Adair
On February 17th, 2022, Brittney Griner was arrested in Russia for carrying marijuana concentrate in her luggage. Brittney Griner is an eight-time WNBA All-Star and two-time WNBA Defensive Player of the Year. She was found guilty of drug charges in Russia and sentenced to nine and a half years in prison in August during her trial.
She was moved from a detention center to a penal colony in the Mordovia region in mid-November. The United States government has attempted to bring her home and made a "substantial" offer months ago, but U.S. officials say Russia has yet to give a "serious" response to their offer. Griner appealed to shorten her sentence but was denied in October. The U.S. is seeking to engage in a prisoner trade involving Griner and former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan for convicted arms dealer Viktor Bout.
According to The Nation's Dave Zirin, where Griner was taken to earlier this month, they are barely treated like humans. Brittney Griner will face “horrific conditions during her time in a Russian prison... with environments that will include homophobia, racism and 16-hour workdays.”
“Bigotry is commonplace, medical care is nearly nonexistent” Zirin says, “inmates are expected to sew uniforms for police and guards. In fact, it's unclear if Griner will even get a bed that will fit her 6-foot-8 frame.”
On December 1st, 2022, after 10 months, the United States and Russia reached a deal in exchange for Brittney Griner. The deal included the release of Viktor Bout, a Russian arms dealer known as the Merchant of Death in exchange for Griner. On The 9th of December, Griner was finally back on United States Soil.
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