For the first time in ages, Terri Jackson, the executive director of the WNBA Players’ Association, had hopes for Brittney Griner.
Griner’s wife, Cherelle Griner, had spoken on the phone with President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris on Wednesday morning. That evening, Jackson attended a rally to support Brittney Griner at the Footprint Center arena in Phoenix. It was hosted by the Phoenix Mercury and Representative Greg Stanton, Democrat of Arizona, with hundreds of Griner supporters on hand.
“It was emotional, it was a celebration, it was a renewed hope and a renewed spirit,” Jackson said. “And yet we are well aware that we are not nearing the end.”
Jackson spoke Thursday afternoon, hours after Brittney Griner pleaded guilty to drug possession in a court near Moscow. Griner, Mercury’s star center, has been held in Russia since Feb. 17, accused of having hash oil in her luggage at a Russian airport. Her trial on the drug charges started on july 1† But despite her admission of guilt on Thursday, the support she has received from her representatives, friends, family, teammates and others has not diminished.
“I think it has made us more determined to show our support for her and recognize that Russia’s process is his own,” Jackson said. “It’s nothing like ours. And yet trying to remain hopeful that there is some progress to get her home.”
Griner’s agent, Lindsay Kagawa Colas, called Griner a “example of courage” in a statement on Twitter on Thursday.
“BG’s service as an Olympic and Global Sports Ambassador, caring for those most in need has always distinguished her; but BG is also a human whose family misses her,” said Kagawa Colas. “She deserves our sympathy, understanding, love and support.”
Texas Democrat Colin Allred, who has worked towards Griner’s release, urged caution in responding to her guilty plea, calling her prosecution a “mock trial” on Twitter.
“Remember, we shouldn’t draw any serious conclusions from this and that she was wrongly detained in the first place,” Allred said.
WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert released a statement Thursday afternoon.
“Brittney Griner remains unjustly detained in Russia, and nothing that happened today will change that 140 days later,” Engelbert said. She added: “She has the heartfelt and unconditional support of the entire WNBA and NBA family, who are eagerly awaiting her safe return.”
The United States Department of State first announced that Griner was classified as “wrongly detainedin May, saying she would try to negotiate her release regardless of the outcome of her trial.
On Thursday, a Russian diplomat suggested: told reporters in Moscow that public outcry over Griner’s release – which he attributed to the Biden administration – was detrimental to the deal.
Griner’s supporters, however, have long believed that it was necessary to draw public attention to her plight in order to get the attention of the Biden administration. After the State Department classified Griner as wrongfully detained, her closest supporters began to feel comfortable drawing attention to her detention. Many fans have been vocal since February.
Beginning in early May, Kagawa Colas joined the Griner family, the WNBA and its players’ union, and the Mercury to start an advocacy campaign using the hashtag #WeAreBG† Several WNBA and NBA players began speaking out about Griner’s situation. The NBA’s Boston Celtics wore T-shirts that read #WeAreBG during NBA Finals training.
In June, Kagawa Colas coordinated with dozens of organizations representing people of color, women and members of the LGBTQ community to send a letter to Biden and Harris urging them to make a deal to bring Griner home.
On Thursday, the WNBA players’ union released a statement positioning the organization alongside those groups.
“The government needs to know that this powerful collective stands behind them and supports everything that needs to be done to get BG, Paul Whelan and other detained US citizens home immediately,” the statement read.
Whelan is a former United States Marine who has been detained in Russia since 2018† He was convicted of espionage in a Russian court in 2020.
This weekend, the WNBA hosts its All-Star Game and other competitions in Chicago. They are an annual celebration of the league’s best players, and Griner has been selected as an All-Star seven times. The league named her as the honorary starter for the All-Star Game on Sunday.
“Sending a very, very strong message from the league, recognizing that we are missing not only one of the game’s biggest, brightest stars, but also a person who is just really important to us outside of this game,” Jackson said.
Before the game, Rev. Al Sharpton announced that he would hold a press conference in Chicago on Friday with Cherelle Griner, Jackson and Los Angeles Sparks forward Nneka Ogwumike, the players’ union president.
“Brittney has admitted to making a mistake, and I hope the Russian authorities recognize this humiliating act and respond with compassion,” Sharpton said in a statement. “She is in the fight of her life right now, so we will be in Chicago to show our support for Brittney and for the administration and their efforts to get her home as soon as possible. We must all continue to pray that she finds strength during this challenging time.”
The WNBA players’ union sometimes refers to its membership as The 144 – a reference to the 12 players from each of the 12 teams in the league. Jackson noted that the All-Star Game would take place on the 143rd day of Griner’s detention.
“It reminds us all — at least those of us who have engaged in this frustrating process of counting the days — it reminds us that we wouldn’t be The 144 without Brittney Griner,” Jackson said. She added: “The symbolism of that has not escaped any of us.”