Twitter campaigns #LetThemPlay and #FIBAAllowHijab are in full operation, protesting the International Basketball Federation rule which states that hijabs are not to be worn during a game. In 2014 FIBA agreed to a two-year testing phase which is ending at the end of the month, thus the hashtag activism.
“Little did I know that my hijab, the same thing that made me accomplish things that I’ve accomplished so far, like meeting the president of the United States, was the same hijab that was going to prevent me from reaching my dream,” commented Bilqis Abdul-Qaadir who was the first hijabi basketball player at the collegiate level.
To date, over 95,000 people have signed the petition to FIBA President Horacio Muratore with a goal of 150,000 in total.
As one Twitter activist commented, “There is no doubt that a @FIBA ban on athletes who wear hijab is discriminatory and unnecessary. See #Rio2016 for examples. #LetThemPlay.” Indeed.
