“We stand for inclusivity as a team — that’s been the big driver of a lot of the stances we’ve taken in the last couple of years.
“It would be horrible to think some of our fans feel they can’t go because they feel threatened or they’re worried about their safety.”
During qualifying for the tournament, which kicks off on November 21, players from Norway, Netherlands and Germany staged protests to highlight concerns over human rights issues in Qatar.
Southgate believes his England players will also look to make their stance known on the matters, but they are yet to determine how best to do so.
“We feel the World Cup is an opportunity to highlight some of these issues and we have a platform to be able to do that,” he said. “We’ve also got to do that in a responsible way.
“I’m not sure that just wearing a T-shirt makes a difference. I don’t totally know what we can do in every aspect to make a difference. We have to be realistic about what that might be.”
Meanwhile, Arsenal goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale will be sidelined for a few weeks after sustaining a hip injury during the midweek loss to Liverpool, with manager Mikel Arteta saying he would not feature for England in their upcoming matches.
Ramsdale, who joined Arsenal in August for an initial fee of 24 million pounds, had started every Premier League game for the London club since he broke into the starting lineup and benched Bernd Leno.
Ramsdale had been called up for England's friendlies later this month against Switzerland and Ivory Coast. He made his England debut in November in a 10-0 win over San Marino.
After Arsenal's 1-0 Premier League win on Saturday, which Leno started, Arteta gave more information about Ramsdale's injury, and confirmed he would not be fit enough for England.
"He struggled for the final 60 minutes in the Liverpool match in midweek," Arteta said. "He will not be able to play for England because of this injury."
