Qatari man is proud a journalist wearing rainbow shirt was blocked from entering World Cup stadium
Topics: World News, Sport, Football, LGBTQ
Charisa Bossinakis
Featured Image Credit: Qatar University. grant.wahl/Twitter
Topics: World News, Sport, Football, LGBTQ
A Qatari man says he’s ‘proud’ of security for detaining an American journalist who was wearing a rainbow shirt at a World Cup stadium.
CBS Sports football analyst Grant Wahl says he was blocked from getting into the Ahmed bin Ali Stadium in Al Rayyan ahead of the USA vs Wales match.
According to a blog penned by Wahl, he explained how he was confronted by a security guard while arriving at the stadium entrance, who ‘angrily’ told him to remove his Pride shirt.
Following the hostile interaction, Wahl tweeted: “Just now: Security guard refusing to let me into the stadium for USA-Wales. ‘You have to change your shirt. It’s not allowed.’”
Shortly after, Wahl sent a follow-up tweet to notify his followers he had been detained for almost an hour but was ultimately granted access inside the venue.
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He wrote: “I’m OK, but that was an unnecessary ordeal. Am in the media center, still wearing my shirt. Was detained for nearly half an hour. Go gays.”
Wahl claims that after he posted his first tweet, a guard ‘ripped’ his phone from his hands while another guard told him his shirt was ‘too political'.
He also saw his friend Andrew Das, a reporter for the New York Times, at the stadium, who revealed to Wahl that he, too, had been detained.
Das was eventually let go, and a security commander apologised to Wahl for the ordeal.
But now, Dr Nayef Nahar Al-Shammar, the director of the Ibn Khaldon Center for Humanities and Social Sciences at Qatar University, has chimed in with his opinion on the situation.
He tweeted: “As a Qatari I’m proud of what happened.
“I don’t know when will the westerners realize that their values aren’t universal. There are other cultures with different values that should be equally respected.
“Let’s not forget that the West is not the spokesperson for humanity.”
However, his tweet sparked backlash, as one outraged user wrote: “It's staggering the amount of people that are simply accepting this framing of 'gay = western'. As though there aren't also LGBT people in Qatar”
Another said: “Ever[y]one welcome* terms and conditions apply.”
A third commented: “A culture that executes queer people for simply existing, treats women like second-class citizens, and relies on slave labour does not deserve an ounce of respect. Human rights are universal and not up for debate.”
The Gulf country has been widely criticized for its discriminatory policy and treatment of queer people.
While the nation has said that gay fans are welcome during the World Cup, they maintain that visitors should respect the culture, in which public displays of affection are frowned upon in Qatar.
UNILAD has reached out to FIFA for comment on Wahl's experience.