WNBA star Brittney Griner recently addressed the criticism she has received. Many have labeled her as un-American and unpatriotic after she kneeled for the national anthem. Griner made the comments during an appearance on “The View,” where co-host Joy Behar asked the professional basketball player about some suggesting she didn’t deserve to be rescued from Russia when she was imprisoned there.
Weighing in on some people labeling Griner as “careless,” she admitted, “Everyone has made a mistake before.” However, she disputed the claim that it is “unpatriotic” for her to kneel in protest while the national anthem played. The WNBA player claimed it is “her right as an American” to protest.
Griner stated, “The unpatriotic thing, that blows my mind, because, one, my dad fought for this country, ’68, ’69, Vietnam Marines and law enforcement for 30 plus years. Dad was my hero. I wanted to be a cop. I didn’t want to play basketball growing up, I wanted to be a cop and go into the military, actually. And doesn’t it make me more American that I’m demonstrating a protest? That’s my right as an American, so for me to be called un-American, I was blown away at that.”
She further noted that in many countries, citizens don’t have the right to freedom of speech and cannot voice their grievances through peaceful demonstrations. Griner was arrested in early 2022 in a Russian airport for possession of cannabis-infused vape cartridges, eventually receiving a nine-year prison sentence before being shipped off to a penal colony.
During a recent interview on ABC’s “Good Morning America,” Griner recounted the appalling conditions she had to endure while imprisoned. “The mattress had a huge bloodstain, and they give you these thin two sheets, so you’re basically laying on bars,” she explained, detailing the experience in the first penal colony she was at.
“From the middle of my shin to my feet stuck through the bars, which in prison, you really don’t want to stick your leg and arm through bars because someone could go up and grab it, break it, twist it and that’s what was going through my mind,” Griner said.
Upon Griner’s release, where she was exchanged for the release of the Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout, she opted to stand for the national anthem during her return to basketball in 2023 as if she had a newfound appreciation for America’s freedoms.
“You have the right to protest, the right to able to speak out, question, challenge and do all these things,” Griner stated. “What I went through and everything, it just means a little bit more to me now. So I want to be able to stand. I was literally in a cage [in Russia] and could not stand the way I wanted to.”
She further described the joy of hearing the national anthem and being able to stand for it. “Just being able to hear my national anthem, see my flag, I definitely want to stand. Now everybody that will not stand or not come out, I totally support them 100%. That’s our right as an American in this great country,” she added.
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