"Everyone deserves to have the freedom to be themselves, no matter who they love or how they identify," said the seven-time F1 world champion driver.Continue reading
This year’s Hungaroring certainly won’t be free from political overtones following reactions to the Hungarian government’s “child protection law” that many find discriminatory against the LGBT+ community. In reaction to superstar Lewis Hamilton, who criticized the bill on Thursday, Justice Minister Judit Varga, Fidesz MEP Tamás Deutsch, MSZP MP Ujhelyi, and another race-car driver, Sebastian Vettel, have all since joined in the debate.
As we previously reported, seven-time world champion, Lewis Hamilton, criticized the bill yesterday, calling the Orbán administration’s recently imposed law “cowardly, misguiding and unacceptable.”
Interestingly, the Justice Minister herself responded to Hamilton, advising him to stick to driving. Judit Varga’s exact words, posted on Facebook, were:
I regret to see that today Lewis Hamilton joined the camp of international fake news producers by attacking our child protection law. The protection of Hungarian children remains the task of Hungarian parents and not of foreign racing drivers.
She added that “I myself learned the rule of the road from textbooks and not by following the media. Let me recommend Lewis Hamilton to read the Hungarian Child Protection Act before saying nonsense. Let the cobbler stick to his last and F1 driver to his race. Good luck with the Hungaroring race!”
Like the Justice Minister, Fidesz MEP Tamás Deutsch also reacted to Hamilton, insinuating that perhaps the reason for Hamilton’s criticism is that he has no children.
Lewis Hamilton has 7 world championship victories, a knighthood, a rainbow opinion, but no child. That’s it,”
the Fidesz founder wrote on Facebook.
This is not all, however, as Deutsch received a snappy response which has become the most-liked reaction under his comment, from none other than Socialist MP István Ujhelyi himself, who commented:
I have six children, Tamás. So, if I say what you’re doing is villainy, does that count for more then?!”
After Hamilton, another racing star, Sebastian Vettel, also joined in the verbal feud. In addition, the four-time world champion was also reported to be wearing special trainers carrying a rainbow design at the circuit on Thursday. Besides having been joined by many more in doing so, he also commented:
“Everybody’s free to do what they want and exactly that, I guess is the point. So I find it embarrassing for a country that is in the European Union having to vote or having some laws like this as part of their — whatever, not constitution but… I just think we’ve had so many opportunities to learn in the past and I can’t understand why you’re struggling to see that everybody should be free to do what they like, love who they like and it’s along the lines of ‘live and let live.’”
“So it’s obviously not for us to make the law, that’s not our role, but I think just to express the support for obviously those who are affected by it,” he added.
Talking about the race itself: while free practice have already begun, the race starts at 2 p.m. on Sunday (Budapest time).
Featured photo via Judit Varga’s Facebook page
