Brittney Griner, the star center for the Phoenix Mercury, is planning to stay in the locker room during the national anthem. Her comments came in the wake of the shooting of Breonna Taylor and the ensuing Black Lives Matter movement. Griner’s comments were so off-putting that many people were offended by them. However, this situation didn’t go away. Despite her punishment, many people are sticking by Griner.
After Griner’s detention at the 2022 ESPYs, NBA players such as Stephen Curry and Megan Rapinoe teamed up to bring attention to the case. The two athletes spoke about Griner’s case in an interview with the Associated Press. Griner has said that she was thrown into the situation of a lifetime. While her detention stemmed from drug charges, it didn’t make the situation any easier.
The word our was also used to tar Griner as an outsider. However, Griner has already represented the United States on the Olympic stage twice and won two gold medals. Her actions have not been welcomed by former President Donald Trump, who called Griner a “potentially spoiled person” and said it wouldn’t be worth it to free a Russian prisoner just to let Griner sing the National Anthem.
In 2016, Griner was named to the US women’s Olympic team. She helped lead the United States to a gold medal in the Rio Olympics. Griner was also named to the team again in 2020 and won another gold medal.
