BRittany Griner spoke Thursday in Phoenix where she continues to plan her return to the field with the Phoenix Mercury. The WNBS basketball player was extremely emotional during the press conference as she recounted her time in Russian prison.
Griner also addressed the topic of trans athletes’ participation in sports, a topic that has sparked huge debate in the sports world in recent months. In fact, just recently, a vote by Republicans in the House of Representatives to ban transgender athletes from participating in women’s sports competitions passed. Additionally, World Athletics officially banned transgender women from competing in women’s world ranking events on March 23.
“A number of states are taking steps to aggressively prevent transgender athletes from playing. Where will this be on your radar when it comes to advocating for transgender athletes to be able to play?” » asked one of the journalists present at the press conference.
Griner, who has been a vocal advocate for LGBT rights in sports, has spoken passionately against the aforementioned laws. “That’s high on the list of things I’ll fight for and fight against. Everybody deserves the right to play. Everybody deserves the right to come here and sit in these seats and to feel safe and not feel like there’s a threat and they can’t be who they are,” Griner said.
“Honestly, I think it’s a crime to separate anyone for any reason while the legislation is trying to pass,” she concluded passionately.
