YouTube star and makeup artist Gigi Gorgeous was allegedly detained at the Dubai Airport because she is transgender.
TMZ broke the story that Gigi had been detained on Tuesday. According to the gossip site, airport police claimed her passport and photo present her as male, but Gigi denied that, saying the immigration officer told her, “I was told you are transgender. You cannot come into the country.”
The 24-year-old Canadian model, who used her YouTube channel to share the journey of her transition, posted an Instagram photo of the ordeal with her 2.1 million followers early Wednesday.
Dubai reportedly punishes the “imitation of women by men” under the “indecent acts” law and it can be publishable through fines, deportation or jail time. This is not the first time the airport has made headlines for detaining trans individuals. Back in 2014, two Brazilian women were detained and had their passports confiscated for the aforementioned “crime,” according to LGBTQ Nation.
Gigi previously posted about her excitement to travel “somewhere dope” before Tuesday’s incident.
A spokesperson for the airport was not immediately available for comment.
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