Protestors Hold a Smoke-Out at the Russian Embassy in Protest of Brittney Griner’s Detention in a Russian Jail

This past week, Cannabis activists gathered outside the Russian embassy in Washington, D.C. and hosted a smoke-out in protest of Brittney Griner’s detention in a Russian prison. Adam Eidinger, co-founder of DC Marijuana Justice (DCMJ) organized the demonstration, and told The Washington Post, “Just as it’s unacceptable for Americans to sit behind bars for simple possession of cannabis, it’s absolutely unacceptable for an American sitting in a Russian gulag.” Gulag is a reference to the forced labor camps in Russia during Stalin’s rule. He added, “We feel compelled to protest the Russian Federation and President Putin, who’s clearly using an American citizen as a pawn in his war against Ukraine.” To bring attention to their protest, Eidinger’s justic group organized a cannabis “smoke out,” which began at 4:20 pm, right in front of the Russian Embassy. Demonstrators also had with them an enormous inflatable joint printed with the message, “Free Britney Griner and the Russians from Putin,” which was written in Russian. The other side of the giant inflatable joint was for the United States government, and written in english it said, “Free 420 Prisoners.” The DC Marijuana Justice group had issued a statement earlier this month, saying, “We call on the President to go one step further and pardon Americans convicted of other nonviolent cannabis offences such as distribution and cultivation. It’s these prisoners who need President Biden’s pardon the most.”