Discrimination in the tennis world?? Of course, why should that surprise us? Prejudice is present in our daily lives and we cannot ignore it. Israeli tennis player, Shahar Peer was banned from a Women's Tennis Association, sponsored tournament in Dubai,United Arab Emirates, because she is Jewish. The official explanation for this disgraceful action was to protect her from angry Arab fans. This two million dollar tennis tournament was not interested in protecting the player by adding more security, or standing up for freedom of religion, but instead cowered to mass mentality. Where is the outrage from the tennis community and the rest of the free world? More than any other sport, tennis crosses boundaries of race, ethnicity, and religion. These players are welcomed with open arms all over the world. Why has the WTA, ATP and other companies, not withdrawn their sponsorship?? How oblivious or greedy, are the top women players in the world, that they have not immediately withdrawn from this tournament in a show of solidarity. The men should also boycott Dubai. Why has only The Tennis Channel tacitly cancelled its broadcast plans. Why are the other sponsors not pulling out of this tournament? Why would other sports figures succumb to the money in Dubai and design golf courses, and play exhibitions in Dubai? How many matches has Federer,Nadal and Agassi played there? Everyone needs to take notice of this horrific action, and act, before this type of prejudice becomes malignant. There is no place for hate in tennis, or the world we live in. This is not the lesson that our children should learn. We urge everyone to raise their voices and be heard now!
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment