(UnitedVoice.com) – Brittney Griner spent nearly 10 months in Russian custody in 2022. Eventually, the US was able to secure her release after agreeing to swap Viktor Bout, a Russian arms dealer, for her. The WNBA star has taken a lot of criticism for her protests against police brutality. She addressed the controversy in a recent interview.
On May 30, Griner appeared on “The View” to talk about her experiences in Russia. Co-host Joy Behar asked the Phoenix Mercury player about the critics who believe she didn’t deserve America’s help because she took a knee during the national anthem. They called her unpatriotic.
Griner said she was “blown away” by people who have said she’s unpatriotic. She said her father was in the Marines and served in Vietnam in 1968 and 1969. After he left the military, her father went into law enforcement and served for 30 years. “Dad was my hero,” Griner said. She claimed that she wanted to be a cop before she started playing basketball.
“I didn’t want to play basketball… I wanted to be a cop and go into the military, actually,” Griner told Behar.
The WNBA star said that the right to protest is hers as an American and she was “blown away” that she was called un-American for exercising her rights. She pointed out that there are many places around the world where people are not allowed to demonstrate.
The hosts of “The View” agreed with Griner, saying that Russians aren’t allowed to protest the government.
When Griner came home from Russia and played in her first game, she told the press that “hearing the National Anthem, it definitely hit different.” The comments struck some as ironic considering her past remarks. In 2020, she said that she didn’t think the National Anthem should ever play during the WNBA season. After word of her newly discovered appreciation for the anthem got out, one internet user said, “A little bit of Russian prison will make you a rootin’ tootin’ patriot.”
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