Brittney Griner

[underwaterrhymes]

Brittney Griner was sentenced to 9 years in prison. I’m so upset.

amp.cnn.com/cnn/2022/08/04/europe/brittney-griner-trial/index.html

[konapoppy]

I’m so hoping they will do a trade and she can come home 😭

[fortnightlily]

This is profoundly injust. I feel for her and her family.

[seeyalater52]

My heart is broken.

[AAM2012]

I’m so so sad about this, I hope a trade is made so she can come home.

[isabel]

My God.

There's another guy there I heard about who has been there for several years already. Same situation.

[starlily]

I'm very annoyed that most coverage (and online comments) is covering this as if it weren't a totally sham trial and sentencing and as if her admissions were made freely and voluntarily! I just hope the conclusion of the proceedings means that negotiations for her release can proceed faster.

[AAM2012]

Aug 4, 2022 21:14:41 GMT -5 starlily said:

I'm very annoyed that most coverage (and online comments) is covering this as if it weren't a totally sham trial and sentencing and as if her admissions were made freely and voluntarily! I just hope the conclusion of the proceedings means that negotiations for her release can proceed faster.

What coverage are you referring to?


I definitely don’t read online comments but from ALL of the coverage I’ve seen, from a local (Phoenix) level to a US level they have been including info along the way about how her her arrest was bullshit, the trial outcome was already predetermine, etc.

I’m in Phoenix so maybe in a bubble but even when I watch shows like Good Morning America, ABC Nightly News, Joy Reid, etc. they’ve all brought these points up since this all began.

[erbear]

This is so profoundly unfair. She is a pawn in an international conflict and I’m so worried for her.

[bimbi284]

Fuck the War on Drugs

[kiminky]

Most of the stuff I see is from folks in WNBA and Jemele Hill and a few legal people. My understanding is this is a step in a super unfortunate process. She has to get a sentence and be a TRUE prisoner in order for a prisoner swap to occur.

[Deleted]

Aug 5, 2022 1:52:23 GMT -5 kiminky said:

Most of the stuff I see is from folks in WNBA and Jemele Hill and a few legal people. My understanding is this is a step in a super unfortunate process. She has to get a sentence and be a TRUE prisoner in order for a prisoner swap to occur.

This was my understanding as well.

Of course the conservatives are all “she deserves what she got for hating America!”

[shauni27]

this whole thing has made me feel sick. Like, what the FUCK. And the trade we are talking about? A convicted INTERNATIONAL ARMS DEALER for a ball player who had minimal amounts of hash? For fuck's sake, Russia. It makes me furious.

[lo]

I’m just praying we can somehow get her out ASAP. What a nightmare.

[spindle92]

I'm a huge WNBA fan and have had season tickets for years. (Not for Phoenix, I'm a MN Lynx gal.)
I have followed this situation since say 1 with complete outrage.
It was a setup from the get-go. The ONLY reason BG pleaded guilty was to settle this farce of a case and get the ball rolling for a prisoner swap. That was 3 fucking weeks ago and the Russian government still continued on.
This woman is almost 7 feet tall and was being transported from the jail to the courthouse in a 5-foot cage.

BG is a lion on the court but an absolute kitten in real life. She is so incredibly kind and caring. She does not deserve this and we need to get her home ASAP.

I could go on and on about this but I will stop there.

[Susie]

Every time there are more updates on her case, I come back to thinking, if WNBA stars were just PAID LIKE THEIR NBA COUNTERPARTS, would she have even gone to Russia in the first place?  And then I get mad again.

[suzyp]

Aug 5, 2022 7:22:55 GMT -5 shauni27 said:

this whole thing has made me feel sick. Like, what the FUCK. And the trade we are talking about? A convicted INTERNATIONAL ARMS DEALER for a ball player who had minimal amounts of hash? For fuck's sake, Russia. It makes me furious.

I believe that Russia tried to make a deal for Paul Whelan using this guy and we told them no, so they needed to kidnap someone else - and someone more famous.

FWIW, the American citizen who was recently released was very clear that the U.S. should do anything it could to get Paul Whelan out, including a trade for the arms dealer.  I do not know enough to know if his opinion is right, wrong, or somewhere in between.

There are comments EVERYWHERE from people claiming that she should have broken Russian law, I guess she has to pay for her crime, and basically not caring because she refused to stand for the SSB. So a bunch of "patriots" are taking Putin's side here, which tracks.  It's so gross.

[AAM2012]

Aug 5, 2022 11:31:47 GMT -5 Susie said:

Every time there are more updates on her case, I come back to thinking, if WNBA stars were just PAID LIKE THEIR NBA COUNTERPARTS, would she have even gone to Russia in the first place?  And then I get mad again.

Ditto

“The average NBA base salary this season is about $5.4 million, compared with about $120,600 for the WNBA. The WNBA season is shorter — 36 games versus 82 in the NBA. But the average annual base salaries mean an NBA player makes 44 times what the average WNBA player makes.”

www.npr.org/2022/04/14/1092677483/brittney-griner-russia-detention-wnba-nba-pay-gap

[spindle92]

1 fucking NBA contract for 1 year is larger than the ENTIRE WNBA league for a year.

It's bullshit.

[shauni27]

Aug 5, 2022 12:47:13 GMT -5 spindle92 said:

1 fucking NBA contract for 1 year is larger than the ENTIRE WNBA league for a year.

It's bullshit.

infuriating. The insane rate we pay professional athletes makes me irate. 

[goldengirlz]

Aug 5, 2022 11:33:37 GMT -5 suzyp said:

Aug 5, 2022 7:22:55 GMT -5 shauni27 said:

this whole thing has made me feel sick. Like, what the FUCK. And the trade we are talking about? A convicted INTERNATIONAL ARMS DEALER for a ball player who had minimal amounts of hash? For fuck's sake, Russia. It makes me furious.

I believe that Russia tried to make a deal for Paul Whelan using this guy and we told them no, so they needed to kidnap someone else - and someone more famous.

FWIW, the American citizen who was recently released was very clear that the U.S. should do anything it could to get Paul Whelan out, including a trade for the arms dealer.  I do not know enough to know if his opinion is right, wrong, or somewhere in between.

There are comments EVERYWHERE from people claiming that she should have broken Russian law, I guess she has to pay for her crime, and basically not caring because she refused to stand for the SSB. So a bunch of "patriots" are taking Putin's side here, which tracks.  It's so gross.

This isn’t justice though (I’m saying that in response to the critics, not you.) The Russian penal colonies are an affront to human rights and this is a humanitarian intervention, as far as I’m concerned. This might as well be a death sentence for a handful of vape cartridges, never mind the sham trial that preceded it.

I did read an article that said that other prisoners and guards were wishing her luck before the sentencing so hopefully her fame will provide at least some cover while the negotiations continue.

[starlily]

Aug 4, 2022 22:01:38 GMT -5 AAM2012 said:

Aug 4, 2022 21:14:41 GMT -5 starlily said:

I'm very annoyed that most coverage (and online comments) is covering this as if it weren't a totally sham trial and sentencing and as if her admissions were made freely and voluntarily! I just hope the conclusion of the proceedings means that negotiations for her release can proceed faster.

What coverage are you referring to?


I definitely don’t read online comments but from ALL of the coverage I’ve seen, from a local (Phoenix) level to a US level they have been including info along the way about how her her arrest was bullshit, the trial outcome was already predetermine, etc.

I’m in Phoenix so maybe in a bubble but even when I watch shows like Good Morning America, ABC Nightly News, Joy Reid, etc. they’ve all brought these points up since this all began.

My local coverage hasn't been as explicit as yours apparently.

[seeyalater52]

Aug 5, 2022 15:57:32 GMT -5 starlily said:

Aug 4, 2022 22:01:38 GMT -5 AAM2012 said:

What coverage are you referring to?


I definitely don’t read online comments but from ALL of the coverage I’ve seen, from a local (Phoenix) level to a US level they have been including info along the way about how her her arrest was bullshit, the trial outcome was already predetermine, etc.

I’m in Phoenix so maybe in a bubble but even when I watch shows like Good Morning America, ABC Nightly News, Joy Reid, etc. they’ve all brought these points up since this all began.

My local coverage hasn't been as explicit as yours apparently.

Yeah the coverage I’ve seen here has been atrocious. So much victim blaming and “well she should have known better” even though quite obviously the confession was coerced, pleading guilty is required for the trade, and the whole thing is a sham.

[msmerymac]

Aug 6, 2022 16:41:34 GMT -5 seeyalater52 said:

Aug 5, 2022 15:57:32 GMT -5 starlily said:

My local coverage hasn't been as explicit as yours apparently.

Yeah the coverage I’ve seen here has been atrocious. So much victim blaming and “well she should have known better” even though quite obviously the confession was coerced, pleading guilty is required for the trade, and the whole thing is a sham.

Not to mention, the amount of THC she was carrying would normally net a fine and up to 3 months in jail. They charged and sentenced her like she had intent to distribute. 

[spindle92]

I don't care how crazy Dennis Rodman is, if he can get her back home then I say go for it.

www.google.com/amp/s/www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/rcna44106

[sstephensid]

Aug 5, 2022 13:27:21 GMT -5 shauni27 said:

Aug 5, 2022 12:47:13 GMT -5 spindle92 said:

1 fucking NBA contract for 1 year is larger than the ENTIRE WNBA league for a year.

It's bullshit.

infuriating. The insane rate we pay professional athletes makes me irate. 

What is the alternative? The company/owner gets even MORE profit instead? 

[jlt19]

Aug 22, 2022 12:28:18 GMT -5 sstephensid said:

Aug 5, 2022 13:27:21 GMT -5 shauni27 said:

infuriating. The insane rate we pay professional athletes makes me irate. 

What is the alternative? The company/owner gets even MORE profit instead? 

Not the point of the thread, but maybe make attending ML sporting events and purchasing merchandise affordable for the masses?

[shauni27]

Aug 22, 2022 12:28:18 GMT -5 sstephensid said:

Aug 5, 2022 13:27:21 GMT -5 shauni27 said:

infuriating. The insane rate we pay professional athletes makes me irate. 

What is the alternative? The company/owner gets even MORE profit instead? 

no, I don't think they should be getting that much either. I do not have a solution, and I doubt it will ever change. but it infuriates me regardless.

[karinothing]

wtop.com/russia-ukraine-war-news/2022/12/griner-for-bout-wnba-star-freed-in-us-russia-prisoner-swap/

She has been released to US custody.

[underwaterrhymes]

karinothing I was just coming here to share this. I’m so relieved.