Brittney Griner, the WNBA star and Olympic gold medalist who spent 10 months in a Russian detention center after bringing two marijuana vape cartridges into the country, is set to speak at a cannabis industry event next year, organizers have announced.
Griner, who was released from detention two years ago as the result of a government-negotiated prisoner swap, will be the keynote speaker in February at the Women Grow 2025 Leadership Summit, the group said this week. The event will be held in National Harbor, Maryland, not far from Washington, D.C.
Women Grow, which supports female leadership in the cannabis industry, said in a press release on Tuesday that Griner’s scheduled appearance underscores the event’s mission and comes as both cannabis legalization and women’s rights are “under threat.”
“This summit is about more than women fighting for cannabis legalization and women’s basic rights to medicine,” Women Grow CEO Chanda Macias said in a statement. “It is a sisterhood of power that intentionally supports and trust[s] in one another for the betterment of our country.”
“Now is not the time to be divided,” Macias added.
From the court to the community, @brittneygriner is synonymous with impactful leadership and the power of resilience.
We’re excited to announce her as our keynote speaker at the WGLS! Join us on 2/17-18 for an experience at the forefront of advocacy: https://t.co/L4JtVYcjV1pic.twitter.com/MIsFGrjJhl
— Women Grow (@womengrow) December 3, 2024
While it’s not clear from the press release what Griner will speak about at the February 17 summit, the talk is likely to include at least some mention of the athlete’s detention in Russia over cannabis and her subsequent release. The case drew widespread international attention and became a rallying cry for advocates opposed to prohibition.
Griner returned to the U.S. in December 2022 following after serving 10 months of a nine-year sentence for low-level cannabis possession. She admitted to accidentally packing cannabis vape cartridges that were found in her backpack at an airport outside of Moscow.
The Biden administration worked various diplomatic angles to get her released, and Griner’s attorneys provided the Russian court with evidence showing she was a registered medical marijuana patient in Arizona.
In the end, the U.S. negotiated a deal to get Griner released and on her way home through a prisoner swap with Russia, returning convicted arms trafficker Vikor Bout.
“It took painstaking and intense negotiations, and I want to thank all the hardworking public servants across my administration who worked tirelessly to secure her release,” President Joe Biden said at the time. “Reuniting these Americans with their loved ones remains a priority—a priority for my administration and every person in my administration involved in this. And we’re going to continue to work to bring home every American who continues to endure such an injustice.”
