Professor accuses Russian authorities for ‘Queer’ and ‘Racial’ discrimination amid Brittney Griner facing ‘Toughest’ conditions
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Brittney Griner
Brittney Griner, the WNBA player, has been sentenced to nine years in prison and is now serving her sentence in a remote Russian correctional colony outside Moscow. A distinguished Professor recently commented on Griner’s situation as she was about to begin her sentence. He asserts that a key factor in the court’s decision to sentence her harshly was her sexual orientation.
Russian officials detained Brittney Griner and charged her with narcotics smuggling in February of this year after finding vape cartridges containing cannabis oil in her luggage—which is prohibited there. A Russian court rejected Griner’s appeal against her nine-year sentence to prison for narcotics use and trafficking in October.
Griner will have to face a regime of seclusion, hard labor, and psychological suffering when she is sent to a correctional colony to complete her sentence. It would be really upsetting to realize that things would all be made considerably more severe for her simply due to her sexual orientation.
Griner’s attorneys confirmed she is being imprisoned in the IK-2 women’s penitentiary colony, which is located 500 kilometers southeast of the city in a small village in Mordovia. Michael Eric Dyson, a renowned researcher, and professor, recently criticized the government in connection to her case.
The professor was on the Drink Champs podcast and he stated: “This Black woman, had she been anybody else — even a straight Black woman would’ve received more support than a queer Black woman with a Black wife.”
According to Essentially Sports, the professor also criticized the Russian government, claiming that Griner’s queer identity played a role in the severity of her sentencing.
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The agonizing circumstance that Brittney Griner has been dealing with in Russia
Brittney Griner was held by Russian authorities at Sheremetyevo International Airport in February, and she has still not returned to her own country. The two-time WNBA defensive player of the year and seven-time all-star was arrested by Russian Customs while carrying vape cartridges containing cannabis oil.
Griner was sentenced to nine years in prison in August after being found guilty of felony drug charges in Russia. In the same month, Griner’s legal team submitted an appeal against her nine-year sentence.
Even though she could have faced a 10-year prison sentence, the attorneys still think that her punishment was unreasonable. The defense lawyers countered that less severe sentences—and even parole—were handed out to other defendants in comparable cases across Russia.
On August 11, representatives of the Russian government revealed that although discussions for a prisoner exchange had already started with the American administration, there had been no further advancement. Griner, a 32-year-old player with the Phoenix Mercury, has won two Olympic gold medals.
She has participated in WNBA off-season competitions since 2014 while playing for UMMC Ekaterinburg in Russia.
Brittney Griner’s current prison conditions
According to BBC, the majority of the prisoners incarcerated in Russia’s regular prison colonies are housed in Brittney Griner’s facility. Colonies under harsh or special regimes are used to house repeat offenders or those serving time for serious offenses. The difference can be seen in the frequency of approved food or clothing shipments, the number of family visits permitted, and the severity of penalties for disobeying rules.
According to reports, the jail colony resembles ancient chambers, with long working hours spent performing physically demanding activities like stitching, little access to medical care, and poor hygiene conditions.
The harsher punishments handed out to male criminals often do not apply to female inmates, but they are nevertheless required to labor 12- to 16-hour days with only intervals for lunch and bathroom breaks.
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Yakshpat Bhargava
(3989 Articles Published)