YouTube Celebrity Gigi Gorgeous forbidden from entering Dubai for being transgender
The LBGT model was held back by authorities upon her arrival at Dubai
Canadian YouTube star Giselle Loren Lazzarato, or Gigi Gorgeous, was detained at Dubai airport on Wednesday. Gigi was held back for five hours by an immigration officer who discovered that she was a transgender.
TMZ reports that Gigi was barred at the immigration desk when an officer told her that she could not come to Dubai for being a transgender. In the country, "imitation of women by men" is illegal and violators are jailed for a year. The 24-year-old online celebrity said that her passport was withheld and that she was trying to exit the country.
The authorities at Dubai explained their side of the issue. They claimed that Gigi's passport identified her as male and that the photo in the passport showed her as a man. Gigi, however, argued that it was not true. She said that the information in her current passport was already updated. She added that she had her name changed from Gregory to Giselle legally in March 2014.
Gigi rose to online fame when she posted her drastic transformation on social media. Originally born Gregory Lazzarato, she documented her transition and has appeared in videos with Kylie Jenner. The LGBT icon is close friends with the Kylie Cosmetics founder. Before her transition, Gigi uploaded makeup tutorials in her YouTube channel as Greg in 2008. She admitted that she was a transgender in December 2013. Presently, her YouTube channel has almost 290 million views and over 2.3 million subscribers.
Fans prayed that the LGBT model will be able to exit the country safely. They expressed their disappointment at the discrimination Gigi faced.
Gigi updated on Twitter that she was finally free after being detained for more than an hour. She posted her experience on Instagram.