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Oscars 2022
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The director of The Queen of Basketball, Ben Proudfoot, took home the Oscar award for Best Documentary Short on Sunday night at the 2022 Oscars, and the director used his acceptance speech as an opportunity to send a message to U.S. President Joe Biden: “Bring Brittney Griner home.”
The beloved U.S. basketball player Brittney Griner is currently being detained in Russia, and has been being held in the country since mid-February. Griner was arrested in February at a Moscow airport, allegedly after cannabis vape cartridges were found in her luggage. She is facing up to 10 years in prison in Russia, at a time when the country is in turmoil as Russian leader Vladimir Putin wages war on Ukraine.
According to a report from CNN, an official from the U.S. embassy has found Griner to be in “good condition,” however, CNN also reported that Griner’s investigation is ongoing and that a trial date has not been set—so it’s still not clear how much longer Griner will be trapped in the country.
The Queen of Basketball is a short documentary that tells the story of Lucy Harris, a professional female basketball player who three national trophies, played in the ‘76 Olympics, and was drafted to the NBA. Though Harris was able to see the film premiere at Tribeca Film Festival, she died in January of this year, just weeks before the film got its Academy Award nomination.
Proudfoot dedicated his Oscar win to her and Harris’s family, and noted that this award should shut down “anyone out there that doubts there is an audience for female athletes.” At the end of the speech, Proudfoot addressed Biden directly: “President Biden, bring Britney Gardner home.”
According to a report from The Grio, the Biden administration said it is “actively working” on Griner’s situation.
Follow along as Decider covers the 2022 Oscars, and keep up with the Oscars 2022 winners list here, and you can find a full list of the 2022 Oscar nominations here.
