Italy’s LGBTQ+ rights association has asked for a meeting with Torino after new signing Josip Brekalo refused to wear a rainbow armband, citing his ‘Christian values.’
The Croatia international caused controversy in Wolfsburg three years ago when the team wore rainbow armbands in support of gay rights, particularly for anyone coming to football matches, except for Brekalo.
Brekalo ‘liked’ several insulting and homophobic comments on social media, then told Kicker that he could not support the campaign because it went “against my Christian values.
“I was raised very religiously, so if someone chooses a different way of life, that’s okay with me because that’s their thing, but I do not have to and do not want to wear a special symbol for someone else, which opposes my Christian worldview.”
With his move to Torino, the story is back in the news and came to the attention of Marco Arlati, secretary of the LGBTQ+ rights association Arcigay.
“We want to relaunch the project ‘Italy takes to the field against homophobia’ in October and Brekalo’s arrival in Serie A is the best opportunity to resume promoting diversity in football, where the issue remains a taboo, despite the many steps forward we have made,” Arlati told Tuttosport.
“Other sports in Italy are a little more advanced in that sense, with Paola Egonu and Lucilla Boari at the Olympics this summer. We are ready to meet Brekalo, the coach and directors of Torino.
“I don’t think Brekalo is homophobic or intended to support extremist positions: quite simply, his Catholic upbringing was not based on knowing or welcoming diversity. Certain positions clash with the reality of today, starting from sport as a vehicle for civil rights issues.”
Sampdoria midfielder Albin Ekdal recently admitted there are many homosexual football players who remain closeted because they fear being mocked or insulted, while Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp lashed out at homophobic chants from his own fans last month, calling them ‘idiots.’
when they people don’t want to, they cannot force someone to. It’s basic principles of human. Why must confront him?
I don’t see anything wrong with what he says. Why can’t they respect his choice? You can’t force someone to support a movement. It’s his right to refuse to participate.
They want their right to be respected but they don’t want to respect other people choices!?
It’s like you want equality but you don’t want others to have it.
His statement is contradictory. On one hand he says that he respects how others lead their lives even if different to his, and at the same time refuses to wear the symbol. Wearing a harmless symbol such as this one doesn’t automatically mean you’re promoting/condoning homosexuality. It just means that you respect how others lead their lives, and that you’re against all forms of hate, mistreatment and abuse towards those of the LGBTQ community.
This is certainly a case of not thinking things thru and or being advised badly.
PS. Not sure why footballitalia somehow moderated and then removed my comment. All I’m preaching is equality and respect for all.
“Certain positions clash with the reality of today, starting from sport as a vehicle for civil rights issues.” – Sport should be sport, not political, not civil rights, not anything else. I have to say I never really saw the point of the various gestures they do – in Italy for example they now and then put a red mark on their face to “raise awareness about violence against women”. How does putting a red smidge of paint on your face actually help those actually facing violence? Just token gestures to make people feel good about themselves.
Promoting “pride” has become such a commercialised thing, every business here (UK) does it, again I don’t see the point. Does plastering the rainbow flag everywhere help the LGBT “community” (a misnomer really, people with different sexual attractions are as diverse in their opinions and experiences as anyone else, not sure what makes them a “community”) in any way? Anyway, I digress…
If it’s against this guy’s beliefs to promote LGBT then that is (should be) his choice. Not wanting to promote it – and wearing an armband is promoting it – because it clashes with your religious beliefs isn’t the same as being “phobic”. These people are supposed to be footballers, not social justice activists. Just let them play their sport in peace!
@Michael
I see a person communicating to us from the heresy period.
Football is not separate from society. To you it might just be a sport, but in fact it is a place of work. The issues that exist within society also exist within sport.
@Rosario Same thing. A place of work is a place of work. When I go to work, I go to do my work. I don’t go to promote social causes, nor would I want others to. Everyone can do what they want on their own time. I’m not interested if my colleagues are straight or gay. Just do your work and do it well.
@Michael.
I think that you’ll find that every workplace in the UK promotes grave causes like eradicating unequal treatment, charters vs racism, as well as sexual equality related causes. Many a big companies tend to have equality and diversity champions. Like I said – clearly communicating to us from another century. I assume you’re also against gender pay gap related causes, taking of the knee, and anything else that stands up to prejudice. Bravo.
@Michael.
What people like you always somehow fail to understand is that highlighting equality oriented causes is not just about you or just about me. These issues go beyond an individual. As a heterosexual man, the thing that worries me or concerns me is who others choose to date, be with or marry – sexual orientation, colour, ethnicity, background, nationality = respect for all.
Wearing a symbol that works against mistreatment and social injustices doesn’t mean YOU are wanting others to be gay, straight or whatever. It just means you want everyone to be treated as human beings. I don’t know why this is so difficult to understand 🤦🏻♂️
Oh wow, look at this. This LGBTQ special interest group demands complete fealty to their religion of diversity or else? I hope Josip stands his ground against as a Christian and as a man.
@Rosario This will be my final comment on this topic, as it’s pointless to continue arguing.
No, not every workplace promotes those things. Mine doesn’t, though they probably pay lip service to it in some text somewhere. It’s not that people at the company aren’t in favour of those things, but the things we promote are things that the company produces, rather than “social causes”.
Yes, I am in fact against the “gender pay gap” stuff. Not because I think that women shouldn’t be paid as much as men, but because every time I have ever heard of it in relation to a case, it’s always flawed. With my company as an example, they produced a report showing our gender pay gap, and there was the expected outrage from the expected few activists. But you can’t just take all employees, divide them by sex, and expect an equal pay result. There are too many other factors to consider. For example, as we are a software company, the majority of developers are male; this reflects the fact that most software developers are male. On the other hand, all of the receptionists are women. Although we also have some female directors and others in higher paid positions, the women in the lower paid roles (e.g. receptionists) drag the average female salary down; conversely, the majority of males are in better paid software development roles, so the average male pay is higher. But that’s not a bad thing or something to be corrected, it just reflects the reality of the type of work we do and the sort of people who apply for the roles.
Aside from that, a lot of our roles don’t pay a fixed amount; that is to say, you don’t get put on x salary just because you’re in y role; your experience, seniority, ability, and all sorts of things can influence your salary. We could take the men and divide them by some arbitrary characteristic, ignoring everything else, and find pay gaps there as well. Hence why I think it’s meaningless. Most recent one I can recall from the news was the Asda thing where shop workers are complaining that they’re not being paid as much as warehouse workers, and it’s somehow a gender thing because most shop workers are women and most warehouse workers are men… despite them being two completely different types of jobs, and women who work in the warehouse would earn the same as men.
I won’t even start on taking the knee as I’ve gone on too long already.
Anyway. I don’t know why you’re putting up the straw man of “Wearing a symbol […] doesn’t mean YOU are wanting others to be gay”. Er yeah, no one ever said that. I do want everyone to be treated as human beings. As I said, I really don’t care – be whoever you are, I haven’t the slightest interest. You want to plaster the rainbow flag on your company’s logo? Your business. I think it accomplishes as much as lighting candles after a terrorist attack does, but I’m sure it would make you feel virtuous if nothing else.
Back to the actual issue in the article. Homosexuality is sinful according to the bible. This guy is devout and believes it. As a result, he doesn’t want to wear a symbol that promotes (i.e. glorifies) it. This may come as a shock to you, but a lot of people in europe are devout christians, and believe this stuff. Sure religion is a relic of the past, yet it’s a protected characteristic. You can’t just say “you must go against your deeply held beliefs in order to promote some social cause”. Religion and society clash now and then, nothing new.
Wait what. He didn’t wear a symbol that represents support for gay rights movement because of his Christian values. What’s wrong with that…I mean they do understand the meaning of freedom of choice.
@Michael
I stopped reading the drivel at ‘Yes, I am in fact against the “gender pay gap” stuff.’
Enjoy being a dinosaur. Education is clearly still a rare gift.
Rosario:
“I stopped reading the drivel at ‘Yes, I am in fact against the “gender pay gap” stuff.’”
Also Rosario:
“Education is clearly still a rare gift.”
You are proof that being educated and being intelligent are two completely different things, a distinction that is surely lost on a midwit such as yourself, much like the irony of your last post.
Well, I don’t agree with any ‘insulting’ + ‘homophobic’ posts or the ‘liking’ of them! But if Brekalo wishes to stay impartial about not wearing a rainbow, then that’s his right, surely? So they wish to raise awareness + use him to promote ‘diversity’ in football? Because he’s already stated that it opposes his personal beliefs or ‘Christian values?’ It sounds like it’s them who oppose Catholicism to me? Oh, the hypocrisy!
I’m neither Christian nor Catholic, but don’t people ever learn? If you try + push a certain view onto someone, it only causes more opposition + resistance! Especially when the ‘inclusive’ ones pushing, are often just as reactionary as the ones who ‘oppose’ them? It doesn’t sound like progress or particularly ‘advanced’ + ‘diverse’ to me, to push one view while questioning another’s right to believe in something else at the same time? He should have the right to say no. As the moment you say to someone that ‘you have to do this,’ is the moment you become like them! It causes more opposition than harmony + it makes me question the intent behind it all. It’s a control thing if it takes a person’s free choice + will away! Is that not what they’re accusing an ‘outdated,’ ‘Catholic’ upbringing of doing as it’s ‘not based on knowing or welcoming diversity?’
You’re either with us or against us man? If people want to label themselves or support something. That’s fine. But if someone doesn’t want to support it. Then that has to be respected too! How can something be free + equal + claim to be about ‘civil rights’ when it’s preaching that someone can’t disagree based on ‘Catholic’ views? They push ‘inclusivity’ while preaching the exact opposite! What absolute nonsense!
rosario you freaking clown! Just the other day you were berating Cristiano Ronaldo for using make up and going to nail salons (which probably happens in your mind) and kept calling him Cristina because somehow you thought that’s an insult. If that’s not homophobic and sexist I don’t what is, yet here you are, preaching like a Jesus from the new century. Hypocrite much?
If you had actually read what Michael wrote, you might have learned a thing or two, but obviously the level of your stupidity knows no bounds and you don’t plan to change that anytime soon.
Just unbelievable.
@Milan Fan
How is it homophobic when Ronaldo is not gay? And how is it sexist? He isn’t a woman. I think you need to maybe learn English properly and or look up the meaning of homophobia as well as sexism.
Learn a thing or two? From a person who clearly isn’t aware of diversity and inclusion initiatives, and then tries to tell me he’s against gender pay gap as well?
This comment section shows exactly why society is in the place it is. Filled with a load of backward, ignorant, intolerant and one sided thinking individuals.
@David
I stopped reading because usually the intolerant towards one particular inclusive movement end up being against pretty much the things that I listed.
What on earth is a midwit? Did you mean dimwit*?
It seems that you both got brought up in similar ways and working in similarly backward workplaces.
@ rosario
Just stop. You’re embarrassing yourself now. Clearly branding a man with female attributes is an insult in your mind. It speaks volumes about who you are and how sexist you are.
My English might not be perfect since it’s my second language but at least I know what midwit is. Look it up it’s a word that describes you perfectly.
And now I’m gonna go back to ignoring you again.
I disagree when someone said by wearing symbol doesn’t mean they automatically promote/condone things.
Imagine you as a football fans for example a milan fans asked by someone else to wear juve or inter jersey/scarf or whatever attributes they asked you. Will you wear it?
Or when you supporting Biden and then someone asked you to wear Trump attribute because they said Trump will support equality to everybody. Will you wear it?
I guess you will decline it.
Even when they say they are promoting respect to each other or equality or whatever it is.
I guess you will never agree to wear something which you don’t support/like/love/believe.
Embarrassing, refusing to wear armbands means supporting the opposing current l, supporting homophobia.
for example when you don’t support the campaign against slavery, it means you agree with slavery, and this is very embarrassing for a football player in this level and this century.
I wouldn’t wear that silly arm band either.