MSNBC Guest Nola Haynes Says Talk About Paul Whelan Being Left Behind Dangerous to ‘LGBTQIA Black Woman Celebrity’ Brittney Griner

Georgetown professor Nola Haynes said on MSNBC that talk about American Paul Whelan being “left behind” in a prisoner exchange with Russia is “dangerous’ to Brittney Griner, a “woman of color who is also a gay woman.”

Zinhle Essamuah spoke with Prof. Haynes on Saturday about criticism of the deal President Joe Biden‘s administration cut with Russia to exchange dangerous international arms dealer Viktor Bout for Griner in a 1-to-1 prisoner swap.

Essamuah asked Haynes whether there’s anyone who benefits from “politicizing” the exchange.

“It’s really unfortunate. It’s strategic rhetoric,” said Haynes. “And the thing about it is, you cannot separate the role that identity is playing in this large international situation.”

Haynes argued that Griner’s identifiers were the impetus for criticism rather than the nature of the swap or the fact that former Marine Whelan remains in Russian custody.

“Brittney Griner is a LGBTQIA Black woman who is also a celebrity,” she said. “So to politicize this, you’re also bringing in race, you’re bringing in gender. You know, you’re bringing in sexual preferences and all these things. So these are dog whistles.”

Haynes said “none of these” criticisms about trading arms dealer Viktor Bout came up when the Biden admin secured the release of former Marine Trevor Reed, who was not swapped for Bout but instead for a convicted smuggler. She then argued that talking about Whelan being “left behind” is an intentional act of endangering Griner.

“This idea that a Marine was left behind is dangerous, and it can really spark a lot of pushback from people who aren’t very interested in, you know, finding out the actual truth,” she said. “So it’s intentional disinformation.”

She added that Griner being “a woman of color who is also a gay woman” is inextricable from the conversation, emphasizing again that critics suggesting Biden took Griner over Whelan, or should have held out for both, are intrinsically attacking Griner’s identity.

Zinhle Essamuah: So what are these reactions tell you about where we are now, and does anyone benefit from politicizing this prisoner swap?

Nola Haynes: It’s really unfortunate. It’s strategic rhetoric. And the thing about it is, you cannot separate the role that identity is playing in this large international situation. Brittney Griner is a LGBTQIA Black woman who is also a celebrity. So to politicize this, you’re also bringing in race, you’re bringing in gender. You know, you’re bringing in sexual preferences and all these things.

So these are dog whistles. None of these were said when Trevor Reed was released. And this idea that a Marine was left behind is dangerous, and it can really spark a lot of pushback from people who aren’t very interested in, you know, finding out the actual truth. They’re just listening to these talking points and you’re repeating them. So it’s intentional disinformation. And then people hear that information and then go out and spread misinformation. And that’s really the problem here.

And on top of the fact that Brittney Griner is a woman of color who is also a gay woman. So we cannot take that out of the equation, too. It’s really unfortunate that she has to come home to this.

Zinhle Essamuah: A lot of considerations, but we’re glad she’s home. Nola Haynes, thank you so much.

Watch the clip above via MSNBC.

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