Colman and Busquet Under Attack: T-Shirts With Political Statements Okay or Not?
9 years ago22 Aug
In the days following Olivier Busquet's victory in the EPT Barcelona Super High Roller, the media and poker community have given a lot of attention to the American. This time, however, reasons have nothing to do with Olivier's great poker skills.
Busquet and runner-up in the SHR, Daniel Colman, attracted attention by doing something that many perceive as very controversial. During the final table, both players wore T-shirts supporting Palestine, with messages „save Gaza“ and „free Palestine“. This caused quite a stir in the community, as many are of the opinion that political statements, no matter the nature, do not belong at the poker table.
Photo by Neil Stoddart, PokerStars Blog
This is not the first time the situation in Palestine caused argument amongst poker players either, as some days ago, Daniel Negreanu found himself under the heat after stating that he fully supported the right of Israel to defend themselves against the terrorist groups like Hamas. Replays on Twitter were of mixed nature as the situation that has divided the world naturally creates a division within poker community as well.
For the record Im 100% pro-Israel defending themselves against terrorist groups like Hamas and you aren't going to change my mind on twitter
— Daniel Negreanu (@RealKidPoker) July 29, 2014
This debate lasted for some days and it has just calmed down when Busquet & Colman situation surfaced. Many players sent heat towards PokerStars for allowing these two players entry while wearing T-shirts supporting Palestine. Colman did not have much to say on the topic, but Busquet tried to explain that his action had nothing to do with politics but was merely an act designed to show his support for those suffering.
My intention was not to offend anyone or even make a real political statement, it was to show support and express solidarity 4 the innocent
— Olivier Busquet (@olivierbusquet) August 21, 2014
Regardless of that, tournament organizers decided they needed to make an official decision regarding these types of situations moving forward, as nobody wants bad publicity, and the decision they came up with is that players will no longer be allowed entry with any sort of political messages or statements on their apparel. This decision created a whole new fuss obviously, as to some people it looks like censorship and denying freedom of expression, which does not go hand in hand with the democratic values of the free society we are all proud to be part of.
I've asked if "hands up, guns down" on a shirt would be allowed and they said they would get back to me
— Olivier Busquet (@olivierbusquet) August 21, 2014
The argument that political debate does not have its place at the poker table may have some weight, but the fact needs to be considered that poker is the game played by grownups, and they naturally have their opinions of all sorts – and sometimes have a strong desire to make those opinions public. Whether censorship brings more harm than good or it is the other way around could be debated all day long. There are strong arguments to support both sides of this story, but later Busquet’s tweets reinforced his statement that the politics had nothing to do with his decision to wear the shirt.
Also it's disturbing that people think I have to want to save children in Gaza EITHER from Hamas OR from Israeli bombings - how about both?
— Olivier Busquet (@olivierbusquet) August 22, 2014
I do not think (or at least I sincerely hope) that no single person can argue against the above statement. Politics aside, deaths of innocent people can never be justified!
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