Quebec soccer ban on Sikh
turbans is unjust: Toronto Star Editorial
- Quebec soccer officialdom has already scored
one humiliating own goal on itself over the Muslim hijab, and is
setting up another over the Sikh turban.
Published on Wed Jun 12 2013
Who
knew Quebec Premier Pauline Marois was a fan of the Beautiful
Game, in her own special way? She has just rushed breathlessly
onto the pitch to take a sharp kick at the Canadian Soccer
Association for having the temerity to expect that Sikh kids in
Quebec be allowed to play wearing turbans, as kids do all across
the country.
The CSA’s decision to suspend the Quebec Soccer Federation for
refusing to rescind its wrong-headed ban on Sikh turbans is
“unacceptable,” Marois fumed this week. The Quebec organization
is “autonomous.” It is not bound by “the Canadian federation,”
she said, playing the sovereigntist card. It can “make its own
rules.” Besides, she happens to endorse its “orientations.”
Would that be the “orientations” that led Quebec federation
chief Brigitte Frot to suggest that turban-wearing Sikh kids go
“play in their backyard” instead of in organized teams? What
kind of message is that for the 850,000 kids who play soccer in
this country? And what image of Quebec does it convey to the
world? Kudos to the under-14 team from Brossard near Montreal
that donned orange Sikh scarves to protest what they saw as
injustice.
The province’s soccer grandees have managed to make themselves
look like bigots. They try to justify the indefensible by
fretting about Fédération Internationale de Football Association
(FIFA) safety rules. But FIFA rules don’t ban turbans. As
Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau put it, “Barring kids from playing
soccer because they wear a turban is wrong.” And on so many
levels.
Indeed, Quebec soccer has already scored one humiliating own
goal on itself, and is setting itself up for another. Last year
FIFA rescinded its absurd ban on girls wearing the Muslim hijab,
a ban the Quebec federation fought tooth and nail to maintain
and enforce. That left Quebec soccer looking foolish. Now
they’re hassling over turbans. Even Quebec officials must know
they are not playing a winning game.
Premier Marois may have her reasons for fanning this nonsense
into a nationalist cause célèbre. But it is Quebec kids who will
suffer. The Quebec federation gets a hefty chunk of its funding
from the national organization. And under the suspension Quebec
teams may not be allowed to compete out of province; they could
be barred from national championships; and games in Quebec may
be cancelled for lack of national referees.
It’s worth noting that the CSA can’t force Quebec to comply. In
fact Quebec officials have reacted to the suspension by
reiterating their ban on turbans, patkas and keskis. Even so,
like FIFA the CSA has a moral obligation to try to make sure
soccer is accessible to all, in order to expand the game.
Quebec’s policy, first for the hijab and now for turbans, bars
visible minorities and limits the field. The CSA was right to
red-card this unsporting play.
Source:
http://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorials/2013/06/12/quebec_soccer_ban_on_sikh_turbans_is_unjust_editorial.html
Kudos to the under-14 team from Brossard near Montreal
that donned orange Sikh scarves to protest what they saw as
injustice. |
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Soccer players sport head
coverings as they warm up on the soccer field prior to
practice of FC Brossard U14AA on Monday June 10, 2013 at
Poly-Arena park in Brossard.
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Coach Ihab Leheta helps
soccer player Shokhab Haydari put on a turban prior to
soccer practice on Monday, June 10, 2013 at Poly-Arena
park in Brossard.
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Soccer player Yiannis
Amir, right, with teammates Thomas Plante St-Cyr, left,
and Kairbek Mourtazov wear turbans during practice of FC
Brossard U14AA on Monday, June 10, 2013 at Poly-Arena
park in Brossard.
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Coach Ihab
Leheta calls out a play to turban-wearing players of the
FC Brossard U14AA team, during practice on Monday June
10, 2013 at Poly-Arena park in Brossard.
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