PITTSBURGH —
Jacqueline Dougherty is traveling to Paris to visit her family and cheer on the Pittsburgh Steelers at their game on Sunday.
Dougherty, who lived in France for decades before moving to Pittsburgh in the 1990s, is bringing a special gift for her family — a Terrible Towel.
“This is the American version which I’m bringing home to give to my family. In French, it’s ‘Le Torchon Terrible,'” she said.
Dougherty said she was not hesitant about traveling to Paris despite the recent unrest in the French capital.
“It’s a team that I think deserves to be welcome in Paris, and I do hope they receive a warm welcome. I hope it’s not going to tamper the game,” she said.
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Dougherty shared her perspective on the demonstrations in Europe, which have been sparked by rising living costs and poor school conditions.
“The idea in Europe is that you fight for your rights, because you have the rights and you deserve that, and people go out and they want to be heard,” Dougherty said.
Plans to attend the Steelers game were almost canceled after she broke her wrist in a bicycle accident.
“I’m thinking I cannot see myself travel like that, but I have all these mixed feelings. Everyone at home said we can’t wait for you to come, we’re going to do this and that, so I didn’t want to tell them it might not happen, but it did happen,” she said.
Dougherty said she doesn’t feel in danger but plans to remain cautious and advises others to do the same by staying aware of their surroundings.
“When you live in Europe, things happen,” she said. “I remember, as I’m living there, going through strikes, so there was no public transportation for a whole week, so you walk to work, and we are used to that, even in the winter. And then there is no garbage pickup. That’s OK, they’ll pick it up later.”
The Steelers are set to play the New Orleans Saints on Sunday at Stade de France. The game will air live on WTAE Channel 4.
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