Lewis Hamilton revealed his bold plan to wear his rainbow helmet in Saudi Arabia as well.
Hamilton introduced a beautiful rainbow-coloured helmet at the Qatar GP. It was a bold move given the country’s many laws against the LGBTQ+ community. It is the same situation in many Gulf countries, with F1 racing in three of them.
The seven-time world champion has always been an advocate for human rights, and despite knowing the controversies it would generate, he chose to take a stand by wearing that helmet in Qatar. With Saudi Arabia also very much in the vein for these controversial laws, rights for the LGBTQ+ community are at a premium.
Hamilton revealed his bold plan to wear his rainbow helmet in Saudi Arabia, and said that he wasn’t bothered with the repercussions that would arise
“I will wear this same helmet for the two that remain, or at least for the next one,” he told he told Autosport, as quoted by Planet F1.
“I’m not afraid of any comments or anything negative. In the past I said ‘we are together’ and ‘love is love’, and it’s important for me to represent that community here, where there are many situations that aren’t perfect and we must improve.
“I would like to know what’s happening here and what they are doing to help the LGBTQ+ collective. I want to hear it.”
Suspect morals
With countries like Saudi Arabia drawing flak from the rest of the world for their backward laws, their image has been tarnished. They have since tried to repair it through sportswashing, but Hamilton was having none of it.
“I think when these sports go to places like that, they have a duty to raise awareness about those issues,” said the 100+ time race winner.
“These countries need the media to talk about these things – equal rights is a serious issue.”
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