Jamie

Weinstein

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February 17, 2009

Shahar Pe’er Out in the UAE, Because Discrimination Against Israeli Jews is Still Acceptable

Shahar Pe'er is a 21-year-old professional tennis player who happens to be from Israel. Ranked among the top 50 female tennis players in the world, Pe'er earned a spot in the Barclays Dubai Tennis Championship that is currently underway. But Pe'er will not be competing in the tournament this week. The United Arab Emirates has denied her Visa request.

Women's Tennis Association chief Larry Scott issued a statement saying that the organization was "deeply disappointed by the decision of the United Arab Emirates." He went on to state that "Ms. Pe’er has earned the right to play in the tournament."

That's it?

Think about this situation for a moment. Pe'er is the only qualifying athlete who is being denied the right to compete in the Dubai tournament. She is being excluded because she is an Israeli Jew. All her friends were invited to the party, but she is the only one that is not being let in the door because of her national origin and her religious heritage.

I wouldn't join a country club that excluded blacks or any other ethnic or religious group. If I did, people would find that repugnant and rightly so. In the same respect, I find it repugnant that the WTA is standing idly by and allowing a country that is hosting one of its marquee tournaments to blatantly discriminate against one of its players. It's simply outrageous.

Look, the UAE can have whatever policy it wants with regards to determining who can and cannot enter their borders. If they don't want Israelis, if they don't want Jews, if they don't want Smurfs for that matter, that is their choice. However, the WTA is not required to have tournaments based in the UAE. And they shouldn't allow tournaments to be held in countries that unfairly discriminate against their players.

While the WTA says it is reviewing "appropriate future actions with regard to the future of the Dubai tournament," no future consideration should be necessary. The WTA's answer to the UAE should have been obvious and immediate: Cancel the tournament.

Not only that – the best male tennis players are scheduled to compete in Dubai next week. 

Following suit, the ATP should also cancel their tournament in Dubai and all future events in the UAE generally until all the emirates that comprise the UAE can guarantee access to all qualifying players. 

This is the only appropriate response. We don't need mushy diplomatic statements. We need immediate international embarrassment of the UAE and economic disruption.

Responding to the situation, U.S. tennis superstar Venus Williams said, "All the players support Shahar. We are all athletes and we stand for tennis." Supposedly, Shahar's other colleagues have called her to offer her their support. 

I'm sorry, but again, this response doesn't cut it. Reacting to the failure of the WTA to make the right decision and cancel the tournament, Shahar's colleagues should have taken the situation into their own hands and withdrawn from the tournament. If Venus Williams and the other ladies who comprise the top 10 women players in the world all withdrew from the tournament, it would have sent a strong message to the UAE.

I am tempted to write that I would have strongly applauded such a courageous stand by the female tennis stars but, honestly, it would not have been all that courageous because it wouldn't have been such a large sacrifice to make. This makes it all the more puzzling that not a single female professional tennis player has chosen to take that form of protest in solidarity with their friend and colleague. 

Are the female tennis players competing in Dubai completely unaware of the statement they are making by continuing to participate in the tournament? Or is discrimination against Israeli Jews the only type of discrimination that is acceptable on the international stage?

It should be pointed out that Pe'er has previously participated in a professional tennis tournament in Qatar without incident. Maybe the WTA should reward Qatar by moving all future scheduled tennis events in the UAE to Qatar.  

Dubai and the other emirates have shown the ability to build glitzy and gaudy buildings, but if they want to show the world that they are a modern, grown-up polity worthy of respect, they have a lot more work to do. As for the WTA, well, they should just be embarrassed by their tepid response.

© 2009 North Star Writers Group. May not be republished without permission.

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