Amazon Restricts LGBTQ-Related Searches and Product Sales in the United Arab Emirates

Under pressure from the United Arab Emirates government, Amazon has restricted the display of search results and inventory related to LGBTQ topics, according to the New York Times. Same-sex relationships and sexuality are illegal in the UAE, and violators are subject to fines and imprisonment. A number of books related to LGBTQ topics have been pulled from sale in the UAE (including Roxane Gay’s Bad Feminist and Maia Kobabe’s Gender Queer: A Memoir), and search results for more than 150 keywords have been hidden.

These included broad search terms such as “lgbtq” and “pride” as well as targeted queries such as “transgender flags” and “lesbian undershirts.

The Times notes that it is unclear what penalties Amazon was threatened with by the UAE government prior to the launch of these restrictions.

Nicole Pampe, a spokeswoman for Amazon, told the New York Times.” As a company, we remain committed to diversity, fairness and inclusion, and we believe it’s important to protect the rights of LGBTQ+ people. But because Amazon stores are located around the world, we must also comply with local laws and regulations in the countries where we operate.”

The announcement comes just days after Amazon’s hometown of Seattle hosted its annual Pride parade over the weekend and underscores the difficulties U.S. tech companies face in supporting certain ideals on their home turf while complying with international laws that conflict with those principles.

However, Amazon has also been criticized within the United States for its hypocritical approach to LGBTQ issues. The nonprofit Seattle Pride, which organized the city’s Pride march, recently severed ties with Amazon for “supporting anti-LGBTQIA+ politicians. The group cited a number of political activities, including Amazon’s donation of more than $450,000 to lawmakers who voted against the Equality Act in 2020.

“We simply cannot partner with any organization that actively harms our community by supporting discriminatory laws and politics,” Seattle Pride said in a statement. The nonprofit’s executive director, Krystal Marx, also claimed that Amazon provided the organization with $100,000 to highlight some of the company’s sponsored changes, including renaming the march to “The Seattle Pride Parade Presented by Amazon.