1,200 workers have died since the World Cup was awarded to Qatar in 2012. 4,000 could die before a ball is kicked in 2022 (ITUC 2014). To understand the scale of this ongoing tragedy, 2,977 people died in the horrific 9/11 attacks on the WTC, Pentagon, and Flight 93. The working conditions in Qatar are inhumane, and demand outrage on a global level.
In Qatar, foreign and migrant workers face enslavement and the prospect of working long hours in extreme temperatures for six days a week. Imprisonment of family members in crowded, unhygienic facilities is also commonplace. Not even fresh water is readily available (ITUC 2014).
The President needs to represent the American people by bringing this issue to a global audience and declaring the World Cup in Qatar an human rights catastrophe.