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The captains of several European teams will not wear “OneLove” armbands in support of LGBTQ folx at the World Cup in Qatar due to the danger of receiving yellow cards.

England, the Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Switzerland and Wales were set to participate in the “OneLove” campaign to promote inclusion and oppose discrimination.

But those countries’ associations said in a statement on Monday that the armband – which features a striped heart in different colors to represent all heritages, backgrounds, genders and sexual identities – would not be worn in Qatar.

Qatar have been criticized over their treatment towards women and people within the LGBTQ+ community in the build-up to this winter’s tournament, while concerns continue to persist over the country’s  of migrant workers.

In spite of their decision, BBC sports commentator Alex Scott wore the armband earlier today in sharp repudiation of Qatar’s ban.

Alex Scott sports the #OneLove armband after England’s decision to abandon the gesture over FIFA sanctions. #FIFAWorldCup | #Qatar2022 pic.twitter.com/MfSTBIZM8E

— SPORTbible (@sportbible) November 21, 2022

“FIFA has been very clear that it will impose sporting sanctions if our captains wear the armbands on the field of play,” the joint statement read.

“As national federations, we can’t put our players in a position where they could face sporting sanctions including bookings, so we have asked the captains not to attempt to wear the armbands in FIFA World Cup games.”

“We were prepared to pay fines that would normally apply to breaches of kit regulations and had a strong commitment to wearing the armband. However, we cannot put our players in the situation where they might be booked or even forced to leave the field of play,” the statement added.

According to CNN, the decision not to showcase the armband in Qatar comes hours before England’s opening game against Iran. The countries said they were “frustrated” by what they described as FIFA’s “unprecedented” decision to sanction the captains should they wear the armband.

“We wrote to FIFA in September informing them of our wish to wear the One Love armband to actively support inclusion in football, and had no response. Our players and coaches are disappointed – they are strong supporters of inclusion and will show support in other ways,” the statement continued.

In the buildup to the World Cup, Qatar – where homosexuality is illegal and punishable by up to three years in prison – has come under criticism for its stance on LGBTQ rights.

Though its laws prohibit LGBTQ rights, publicly the country of Qatar has repeatedly insisted that “everyone is welcome” at this year’s tournament.

From Qatar to Colorado Springs, Anti-LGBTQ hate is a constant threat.

The decision to disallow the unifying arms bands comes on the heels of a 22-year-old gunman entering an LGBTQ nightclub in Colorado Springs, Colorado, just before midnight Saturday. The gunman immediately opened fire, killing at least five people and injuring 25 others, before patrons confronted and stopped him, police said Sunday.

A makeshift memorial for the victims of Saturday’s shooting at Club Q in Colorado Springs. Photograph: Damian Dovarganes/AP

The suspect in the shooting at Club Q was identified as Anderson Lee Aldrich, according to Colorado Springs Police Chief Adrian Vasquez. He used a long rifle in the shooting, and two firearms were found at the scene, Vasquez said.

The motive for the attack was not immediately clear. Whether or not it was a hate crime was part of the investigation into the attack, Vasquez said.

While senseless gun violence affects yet another community and hate speech targeting LGBTQ people increases among far-right influencers and others online, experts warn that extremist groups may see the rhetoric as a call to action.

AP News reports such may have been the case when 31 members of the neo-Nazi group Patriot Front were arrested in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, earlier in June and charged with conspiracy to riot at a Pride event, said Sophie Bjork-James, an assistant professor in anthropology at Vanderbilt University who researches the white nationalist movement, racism and hate crimes in the U.S.

These booking images provided by the Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office show the 31 members of the white supremacist group Patriot Front who were arrested after they were found packed into the back of a U-Haul truck with riot gear near an LGBTQ pride event in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, on Saturday, June 11, 2022. Top row, from left, are Jared Boyce, Nathan Brenner, Colton Brown, Josiah Buster, Mishael Buster, Devin Center, Dylan Corio, and Winston Durham. Second row, from left, are Garret Garland, Branden Haney, Richard Jessop, James Julius Johnson, James Michael Johnson, Connor Moran, Kieran Morris and Lawrence Norman. Third row, from left, are Justin O’leary, Cameron Pruitt, Forrest Rankin, Thomas Rousseau, Conor Ryan, Spencer Simpson, Alexander Sisenstein and Derek Smith. Bottom row, from left, are Dakota Tabler, Steven Tucker, Wesley Van Horn, Mitchell Wagner, Nathaniel Whitfield, Graham Whitsom and Robert Whitted. (Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office via AP)
These booking images provided by the Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office show the 31 members of the white supremacist group Patriot Front who were arrested after they were found packed into the back of a U-Haul truck with riot gear near an LGBTQ pride event in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, on Saturday, June 11, 2022. Top row, from left, are Jared Boyce, Nathan Brenner, Colton Brown, Josiah Buster, Mishael Buster, Devin Center, Dylan Corio, and Winston Durham. Second row, from left, are Garret Garland, Branden Haney, Richard Jessop, James Julius Johnson, James Michael Johnson, Connor Moran, Kieran Morris and Lawrence Norman. Third row, from left, are Justin O’leary, Cameron Pruitt, Forrest Rankin, Thomas Rousseau, Conor Ryan, Spencer Simpson, Alexander Sisenstein and Derek Smith. Bottom row, from left, are Dakota Tabler, Steven Tucker, Wesley Van Horn, Mitchell Wagner, Nathaniel Whitfield, Graham Whitsom and Robert Whitted. (Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office via AP)

The arrests came as a toxic brew of anti-LGBTQ rhetoric has been on the rise in Idaho and elsewhere.

“There is a very clear relationship between normalizing this hateful content and having extremist groups try to mobilize around that in hateful actions,” she said. “We can see a direct relationship between the spectrum of anti-LGBT rhetoric from statehouses into these extremist groups.”

The Department of Homeland Security warned last week that white nationalists and supremacists are using social media platforms like Instagram, Telegram and TikTok to present skewed framing of divisive issues like abortion, guns and LGBTQ rights, potentially driving extremists to attack public places across the U.S.

Joe Biden issued a statement on Sunday, saying “we must drive out the inequities that contribute to violence” against the LGBTQ community.

Hailing from Charlotte North Carolina, born litterateur Ezekiel J. Walker earned a B.A. in Psychology at Winston Salem State University. Walker later published his first creative nonfiction book and has...

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