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The AFLW’s first-ever Muslim player, Haneen Zreika, has withdrawn from the competition’s honorary lap due to religious beliefs – the second time she has done so.
The 23-year-old Greater Western Sydney Giants player will not play in the club’s game against Hawthorn on October 16 in Sydney, where the squad will wear specially designed pride jerseys.
The round celebrates and honors the LGBTQI+ community, which is deeply intertwined with the competition given the number of gay players.
Zreika caused a stir in January when she made the same decision to withdraw from the Giants game – and that outrage seems to be resurfacing.
Haneen Zreika, pictured with her long-term boyfriend, withdraws from the club’s game in the AFLW pride round due to her Muslim faith
It comes after Essendon CEO Andrew Thorburn was forced to resign after just one day due to his ties to a controversial church that condemns homosexuality and likens abortion to the Holocaust.
Islam, the second largest religion in the world, is clear in its teachings that homosexuality is a sin, and Zreika said during the pride round that she felt she had “a responsibility to represent her faith.”
For her, that means she’s not wearing the rainbow jersey GWS designed for the round — and she revealed she felt like an “outsider” when the AFL turned down her proposal to just wear the regular strip.
Haneen Zreika, who plays for the Giants, refuses to wear the club’s custom-designed rainbow jersey that promotes the LGBTQI+ community
“I didn’t want to make a big deal of it until the AFL rejected me from wearing a regular shirt. That was a shock to me,” said the fast-paced midfielder in the Disney+ AFLW documentary “Fearless,” which was released at the start of the season.
“I like what the AFL does and the way they involve everyone, but you can’t have a round where you include people but exclude someone from affecting their faith.
“I really feel like an outsider, like, ‘no mate, you’re not part of us,'” Zreika said.
Zreika has a number of gay teammates, including captain Alicia Eva, Katherine Smith and Pepa Randall; and insists she’s not “judging the girls” despite differing beliefs.
GWS Giants AFLW players modeled the pride jersey from the side last season. Rebecca Privitelli (right) and Katherine Smith (center) are both gay
“They can be whatever they want,” she said in the documentary series.
“I still love and respect them and they are still my friends. But for me to wear a sweater and represent our faith… there’s just… (I can’t do it).’
Zreika and the club have said they will not comment on the situation and will instead focus on their upcoming game against Collingwood on Sunday, and their proud round clash on October 16.
But that hasn’t stopped a storm of controversy on social media, especially in the wake of the Thorburn debacle and seven Christian Manly players refusing to wear the club’s rainbow jersey during the NRL season.
Haneen Zreika and her boyfriend, whose identity is unknown, celebrate Eid Mubarak earlier this year
“If Essendon’s CEO was asked to resign or resign because of his religious beliefs, why wasn’t Haneen Zreika forced to resign or resign for expressing her religious beliefs against homosexuality?” asked a fan on Twitter.
Top footy and racing pundit Ralph Horowitz called those who criticized Thorburn but kept silent about Zreika’s decision as “weak hypocrites.”
Others criticized the AFL, GWS and Victorian Prime Minister Dan Andrews, who expressed strong dissatisfaction with Thorburn’s appointment for not being stronger on the issue – as they were in condemning Essendon.
Haneen Zreika (left), pictured against the Swans in round three, will not play in the club’s match against Hawthorn
However, some were not so nice, saying that her decision not to wear a rainbow-colored sweater was simply “homophobic.”
“There is nothing in Islam that prevents her from wearing a rainbow. She is making a personal decision to actively distance herself from the support of the LGBTQI community, her religion has not forced her to do so,” one man, who claims to be a former federal agent who worked in counter-terrorism, wrote on Twitter. .
“Deliberate, shameful, hateful bigotry,” interrupted one fan; with another comment: ‘She (Zreika) must be fired immediately. She spreads hatred, while the ex-Bomber CEO (Thorburn) was guilty by association.”
A crucial difference between Zreika’s attitude and that of the infamous “Manly Seven,” Thorburn and outspoken former NRL star Israel Folau, is that the Giant star made her decision calmly and respectfully.
Folau and members of the Manly Seven have publicly spread hatred and condemned the LGBTQI+ community to hell on their social media, while the Thorburn Church – of which he presides – voices its dismay at homosexuality.
“Practicing homosexuality is a sin,” reads a sermon on the City on the Hill Church website.
Zreika (center), a practicing Muslim, is pictured with her mother (left) and another Muslim Aussie Rules player, Lael Kassam
Thorburn, who had only been in the role for one day, was forced by Essendon to choose between his role at the club and his position at the church – and he chose the latter.
The club’s ultimatum was supported by McLachlan.
“The organization (City on the Hill church) he led and their stance on some issues seemed to be at odds with the Essendon Football Club stance…I understand,” he told reporters on Wednesday.
Given the two completely different approaches to the competition for what are both very delicate matters, the controversy surrounding Zreika’s decision will no doubt continue to rage ahead of the game on October 16.