rewrite this content and keep HTML tags
WNBA player Brittney Griner, who was detained in a Russian prison for nearly 300 days throughout 2022, spoke as the third annual honoree of the USC Charlotta Bass Journalism and Justice Lab’s Trailblazer speaker series on Tuesday.
Griner is a three-time Olympic gold medalist, a WNBA champion and a member of the Atlanta Dream, having signed just weeks ago — and a six-time WNBA All-Star. Griner’s off-the-court impact also includes advocacy work against discrimination and unjust laws related to LGBTQIA+ equality.
“It’s almost impossible for me to even believe that she’s here speaking to us right now after all that she went through,” said Alyssa Hope, a sophomore majoring in political science.
The Charlotta Bass Media Trailblazer Lecture Series, held annually during Black History Month, honors a Black storyteller who has impacted the media landscape, inviting them to campus to deliver a talk.
Malcolm Ferrouillet, a sophomore majoring in public relations and advertising and a booking producer for the Bass Lab, explained why Griner was this year’s honoree.
“Brittney Griner was chosen because of her perseverance of being able to trailblaze past all that she went through,” Ferrouillet said. “From her being able to thrive past [her imprisonment], by being able to… write a book, have a family, and still being able to succeed in this day.”
In a conversation with Bass Lab founder Dr. Allissa V. Richardson, Griner explained in detail the brutality of her time in the Russian prison where she was detained. Griner was detained on drug possession charges and sentenced to nine years in prison.
“It was 12… days with no real shower. They threw me in solitary with nothing. I had a couple of shirts and I had a parka jacket and my Nike boots on. That’s it,” Griner said.
The unifying effort to secure Griner’s eventual release was incredibly inspiring to her. Griner’s wife, Cherelle, and NBA stars like Stephen Curry all called for her release throughout 2022, motivating the Biden-Harris administration to initiate a prisoner exchange with Russia, which brought back Griner and returned Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout to his home country.
“It was really a collection of so many people coming together… we can really do anything if we just come together and put our minds together towards one goal,” Griner said.
The imprisonment Griner went through and her perseverance, in spite of it, affected many who attended.
“It was definitely very moving,” said Dylan Gatua, a senior majoring in computer science engineering.
The event was also organized in conjunction with Griner’s memoir, “Coming Home,” which was released last May and further describes her experience in Russia. After hearing Griner speak, Gatua was convinced to pick it up.
“Just hearing what she had to say definitely made me want to get the book,” Gatua said.
Reflecting on the event, Ferrouillet wanted attendees to walk away with hope.
“No matter what you go through, you can still overcome it,” Ferrouillet said. “I can never imagine being in a Russian prison for more than [293] days, let alone an hour, 24 hours at that… [she was] showing others that anything is possible.”
