Emily Ratajkowski Explains Why She Turned Down Saudi Arabia Trip Despite Many Celebrities Accepting the Invite

You may have noticed on social media this weekend, a ton of stars flocked to Saudi Arabia to attend the very first MDL Beast, which is being described as a “a three day festival bringing together the best in electronic music, performing arts and culinary craft—just outside of Riyadh.”

Some of the stars who were reportedly there included Scott Disick, Sofia Richie, Irina Shayk, Alessandra Ambrosio, Elsa Hosk, Jourdan Dunn, Stella Maxwell, Armie Hammer and Ryan Phillippe, among others.

However, Emily Ratajkowski took to social media to explain why she did not attend, despite being invited.

“I have always wanted to visit Saudi Arabia, but when a recent opportunity came to me involving making and promoting an appearance there, I had to decline,” Emily wrote. “It is very important to me to make clear my support for the rights of women, the LGBTQ community, freedom of expression and the right to a free press. I hope coming forward brings more attention to the injustices happening there.”

The popular Instagram account Diet Prada openly criticized the event, writing, “Following the government’s pre-meditated murder of journalist Jamal Kashoggi in October 2018 , the arrest of women’s rights activist Loujain al-Hathloul in May 2018, the outing of a gay Saudi journalist and his partner who began receiving death threats from their families (homosexuality is a crime in Saudi Arabia and punishable by death), and countless other human rights abuses, a bevy of supermodels, influencers, celebrities, and musicians convened in Riyadh for the inaugural @mdlbeast . According to @hypebeast , the electronic music festival is “one of the most significant musical events the region has ever seen.”