April 14, 2023
The Fight Continues: Britney Griner Makes A Statement During Surprise Cameo At Rev. Al Sharpton’s NAN Luncheon
WNBA titan Brittney Griner made a surprise visit to the Big Apple to bring her mission forward.
According to TMZ, 32-year-old Griner and her wife, Cherelle, made a surprise appearance at Rev. Al Sharpton’s National Action Network’s Women’s Empowerment Luncheon in NYC on Thursday. But the professional basketball player wasn’t just a celebrity guest in the crowd.
Following an emotional homecoming, Griner has since vocalized her passion and a public invitation to fight to release U.S. citizens being held captive in Russia and beyond. From the iconic NAACP Image Awards in California to the Big Apple, Griner is not afraid to speak her truth on behalf of others, considering the adverse trials she had to overcome.
“I want to continue to fight to bring home every American detained overseas. That means everything to me,” Griner said, per TMZ.
The keynote speaker for the event, U.N. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield, even echoed Griner’s statement by discussing the importance of returning “every single American who’s being unjustly detained.”
In December, Griner was released from a Russian jail in a prisoner swap after spending nearly 10 months in custody. The Phoenix Mercury center had been previously playing for the Russian Premier League basketball team UMMC Ekaterinburg during her off-season when she was stopped at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo International Airport, charged with smuggling illegal drugs, tried, and then sentenced to nine years in a Russian prison colony, BLACK ENTERPRISE previously reported.
The fight continues with Griner’s power of her voice. Having named her one of their 100 Most Influential People of 2023, Time magazine can attest to that.
WNBA alum Sue Bird wrote the excerpt for Griner and spoke of her “resilience” on and off the court.
“She was BG, through and through, throughout her horrible ordeal.”
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Now, Griner is ready to recount the traumatic time she experienced being held captive in Russia in an upcoming memoir.
“That day (in February) was the beginning of an unfathomable period in my life which only now am I ready to share,” Griner said in a statement by Alfred A. Knopf.