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Sam Kerr’s alleged comments may have had a racial element, but they were not ‘racist’

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/mario-peucker-192086">Mario Peucker</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/victoria-university-1175">Victoria University</a> Footballer Sam Kerr has been charged with “racially aggravated harassment” over a January 2023 incident in which she allegedly insulted a London police officer. According to <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/2024/mar/06/sam-kerr-allegedly-called-police-officer-a-stupid-white-bastard-source-says">widespread media reports</a>, she is said to have called the officer a “stupid white bastard”. Kerr has pleaded not guilty to the charge and has <a href="https://www.9news.com.au/world/sam-kerr-legal-team-reportedly-challenge-allegations-of-police-harassment/744598ef-75f9-4e03-acb5-7b37aecde8d1">reportedly denied</a> using the word “bastard”. According to section 33 of the British Crime and Disorder Act, to be found guilty of such an offence, the conduct would have had to cause – or have intended to cause – alarm or distress. Regardless of the court’s ultimate verdict, one big question seems to occupy the minds of many: does the phrase attributed to Kerr constitute racism? Kerr was born in Western Australia, and has Indian ancestry on her father’s side. Can she be racist towards a white person, and more specifically to a white police officer? Assuming it is true Kerr used the term “white”, there is a racial element. But “racial” is not the same as “racist”. <h2>Definitions of racism</h2> It is important to note here that “race” is not a biological category (there is only one human race). Race is a <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/race-is-a-social-construct-scientists-argue/">social construct</a>, invented and cemented centuries ago to legitimise colonial atrocities, oppression and forms of subjugation including slavery. There are many definitions of racism, but there has been a broad consensus for decades that racism is more than “just” prejudice and discriminatory behaviour. It is not simply a matter of less favourable treatment of an individual or group of people based on their actual or ascribed ethnic background, skin colour, origin or related characteristics. Racism also reflects and manifests as systemic exclusion and marginalisation based on historically rooted power imbalances and racial hierarchies that put white people at the top. To put it very simply, the scholarly (if not the legal) definition is that “<a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/record/1998-07453-002">racism equals power plus prejudice</a>”. In a vicious cycle, everyday racism and discrimination are shaped and justified by racial hierarchies, while they operate continuously in a way that cements power imbalances and racial marginalisation. This may sound a bit abstract, but if we do not recognise this power dynamic, we trivialise racism as little more than name-calling. We will fail to understand how racism operates and how it continues to affect people from racially marginalised groups in their daily lives. One way to illustrate the systemic nature of racism is to look at the persistent lack of representation of people of colour in leadership positions in the corporate sector, the media and governments in Australia and elsewhere. In the United Kingdom, where the alleged incident occurred, institutional racism – including within the police force – has been recognised since the release of the <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-stephen-lawrence-inquiry">Macpherson report</a> in 1999. It was reaffirmed in 2023 by the <a href="https://www.met.police.uk/SysSiteAssets/media/downloads/met/about-us/baroness-casey-review/update-march-2023/baroness-casey-review-march-2023a.pdf">Baroness Casey Review</a>, despite some political pushback. The review found “Met officers are 82% White and 71% male, and the majority do not live in the city they police. As such, the Met does not look like the majority of Londoners.” <h2>Reverse racism?</h2> Anti-discrimination legislation in the UK and Australia usually does not speak explicitly of “racism”. It outlaws certain acts that are motivated, partially or wholly, by a person’s race (or other personal identity markers). Legislators introduced these laws with the intention of enhancing the legal protections for those who were considered vulnerable to racism. In Australia, for example, the <a href="https://www.legislation.gov.au/C2004A00274/latest/text">Racial Discrimination Act</a> (1975) is often celebrated as a legal cornerstone in the country’s journey away from its racist “White Australia” history towards a modern multicultural society. The United Nations’ <a href="https://www.ohchr.org/en/instruments-mechanisms/instruments/international-convention-elimination-all-forms-racial">International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination</a> (1965), ratified by Australia in 1975 and the UK in 1969, makes its intention explicit when it calls on all state parties to make it an offence to disseminate “ideas based on racial superiority”. The issue of power structures should also be seen through an institutional lens. It is difficult to imagine a person on the streets of London with more institutional power than a white police officer. Being called a “stupid bastard” might hurt someone’s feelings. But while I’m in no position to judge whether Sam Kerr’s alleged actions have caused “distress” to the officer – as the law would require – labelling the incident as racist is clearly not in line with what racism means. Such a definition would not align with the concept’s institutional and systemic dimensions. It is not what anti-discrimination laws were intended to outlaw. Claims of anti-white or “reverse” racism are based on a shallow, misguided and inaccurate understanding of what racism really constitutes. If Kerr’s court case fails to acknowledge the deeper purpose of anti-racism legislation by equating “racial” with “racist”, it risks setting a highly problematic precedent that would undermine efforts to acknowledge and tackle racism in all its forms. What would be the message to those millions of people in the UK, Australia and elsewhere who have to face racism every day without recognition of the harm it causes and without the support and capacity to sue the perpetrators? What would they think about their right to equality and their place in society?<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/225267/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/mario-peucker-192086">Mario Peucker</a>, Associate Professor and Principal Research Fellow, Institute for Sustainable Industries and Liveable Cities, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/victoria-university-1175">Victoria University</a> This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/sam-kerrs-alleged-comments-may-have-had-a-racial-element-but-they-were-not-racist-225267">original article</a>.

Legal

What is ‘reverse racism’ – and what’s wrong with the term?

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/mario-peucker-192086">Mario Peucker</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/victoria-university-1175">Victoria University</a> “Reverse racism” is sometimes used to describe situations where white people believe they are negatively stereotyped or discriminated against because of their whiteness – or treated less favourably than people of colour. “Reverse racism” claims have surfaced in the current debate around the <a href="https://theconversation.com/10-questions-about-the-voice-to-parliament-answered-by-the-experts-207014">Voice to Parliament</a> referendum. “The concept looks racist to me,” <a href="https://www.skynews.com.au/opinion/building-a-voice-to-parliament-into-our-constitution-would-divide-us-along-racial-lines-and-do-nothing-to-change-the-past/news-story/794a86f16d664e6a4ebfbed589b27a01">wrote Sky News commentator Kel Richards</a> last August. Such views misrepresent the Voice as preferential treatment of First Nations peoples, falsely suggesting it would somehow weaken the political say of non-Indigenous Australians. Complaints of reverse racism can be found in the community more generally, too. “I think average, working-class, white Australian males have it the hardest out of anyone in society,” said one 23-year-old man in a <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2673-995X/3/1/19">2023 study</a> of Australian men, “we are the victims of reverse racism”. “Reverse racism” is an idea that focuses on prejudiced attitudes towards a certain (racialised) group, or unequal personal treatment – namely, discrimination. But it ignores one of racism’s central markers: power. “Prejudice plus (institutional) power” is the widely accepted basic definition of racism. Or, as <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/record/1998-07453-002">two researchers defined it</a> in 1988: “Racism equals power plus prejudice.” In a <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2014/jun/04/aamer-rahman-reverse-racism-comedy-tour">famous 2013 sketch</a>, comedian Ahmer Rahman said, yes, reverse racism is possible … if you go back in a time machine and convince the leaders of Africa, Asia and the Middle East to invade and dominate Europe hundreds of years ago, leading to systemic inequality across every facet of social and economic life, “so all their descendants would want to migrate [to] where black and brown people come from”. Put simply, the concept of “reverse racism” – or “anti-white racism” – just doesn’t work, because racism is more than just prejudice. <figure><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/dw_mRaIHb-M?wmode=transparent&start=0" width="440" height="260" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe><figcaption>Comedian Ahmer Rahman unpacks ‘reverse racism’, and why making it real would need a time machine.</figcaption></figure> <h2>Why ‘reverse racism’ is a myth</h2> Prejudice and discrimination are inherently tied to historically rooted and entrenched, institutionalised forms of systemic racism and racial hierarchies, injustices and power imbalance. The continuing lack of diverse representation in <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/jul/25/the-47th-parliament-is-the-most-diverse-ever-but-still-doesnt-reflect-australia">political</a>, social and economic positions of influence is just one of many indicators that we’re still a long way from living in a post-racial society. White people may be called a derogatory name with a reference to their whiteness. They may be discriminated against: for example, by an ethnic business owner who prefers to employ someone from their community background. This may sometimes be unlawful. At other times, it may be a lawful form of “positive action” or “affirmative action”, aimed at reducing historically entrenched, intergenerational and systemic inequalities. But in all these instances – and regardless of whether it’s lawful or not – the term racism, or “reverse racism”, would not apply. <h2>How common are reverse racism claims?</h2> A representative US survey, conducted by PEW in <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2019/04/09/race-in-america-2019/">2019</a>, found that around 12% of respondents believed “being white hurts people’s ability to get ahead in the country nowadays”. Among white Republicans, the proportion was 22%. It was only 3% among white Democrats. A more recent US survey, in <a href="https://theconversation.com/poll-reveals-white-americans-see-an-increase-in-discrimination-against-other-white-people-and-less-against-other-racial-groups-185278">2022</a>, concluded that 30% of white respondents saw “a lot more discrimination against white Americans”. Representative data on these issues is lacking in Australia. But there is evidence a significant minority of Australians seem convinced anti-white racism is a thing. A 2018 <a href="https://opus.lib.uts.edu.au/bitstream/10453/128799/4/Reverse%20racism%20and%20white%20victimhood%20in%20Australia%20JIS%20March%202018%20clean.pdf">Australian survey</a> found that around 10% of respondents who stated they had witnessed racism as bystanders said the victim of the allegedly “racist” incident was a white person. Another recent (non-representative) <a href="https://periscopekasaustralia.com.au/papers/volume-10-2-2023/demarcating-australias-far-right-political-fringe-but-social-mainstream/">survey</a> of 335 Australian men in 2021 showed that one in three respondents agreed with the statement: “white people are the victims these days”. Australian senator <a href="https://theconversation.com/pauline-hanson-built-a-political-career-on-white-victimhood-and-brought-far-right-rhetoric-to-the-mainstream-134661">Pauline Hanson</a> has been complaining about “reverse racism” since her maiden speech to parliament in 1996, when she described “the privileges Aboriginals enjoy over other Australians”. <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/pauline-hansons-1996-maiden-speech-to-parliament-full-transcript-20160915-grgjv3.html">She said</a>: "We now have a situation where a type of reverse racism is applied to mainstream Australians by those who promote political correctness […]" Gamilaraay man <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/commentisfree/2020/mar/12/its-time-to-put-an-end-to-the-gaslighting-that-occurs-every-day-in-australia">Joshua Waters says</a> most First Nations Australians have heard this kind of sentiment, and statements like: “Uh, I’m not racist. You’re racist for calling me racist. Actually, that’s reverse racism!” But as he has argued, “To be called racist for identifying actual racist behaviours and rhetoric is not OK.” <h2>Backlash against racial justice</h2> “Reverse racism” sometimes reflects a naïve but profound lack of racial literacy. But more often, it’s a defensive backlash against societal reckoning with racial injustices, both past and present. And it’s often an expression of “<a href="https://libjournal.uncg.edu/ijcp/article/viewFile/249/116">white fragility</a>” in the face of an <a href="https://scanloninstitute.org.au/mapping-social-cohesion-2022">increasing awareness</a> of racism in Australia – as epitomised by Hanson’s political career. “Reverse racism” claims are often strategically adopted by right-wing populist political actors and far-right fringe movements, to garner support and recruit new sympathisers and members. This can manifest in political stunts such as the infamous “<a href="https://edition.cnn.com/2018/10/15/australia/pauline-hanson-white-australia-intl/index.html">ok to be white</a>” motion Hanson put to the Australian Senate in 2018, which claimed to condemn alleged “anti-white racism”. The phrase “it’s OK to be white” had <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-10-17/origins-of-its-ok-to-be-white-slogan-supremacists-united-states/10385716">previously been used</a> by white supremacists in the US. Anti-white racism claims have also been expressed in more explicit, aggressive and extreme ways: as threats of “<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-believers-in-white-genocide-are-spreading-their-hate-filled-message-in-australia-106605">white genocide</a>”, a core neo-Nazi belief. In far-right extremist movements, in Australia and globally, these conspiratorial narratives are commonly used to mobilise – and in some cases, have become crucial drivers for – white supremacy terror attacks, like the 2019 Christchurch mosque shootings in New Zealand, which killed 51 people and injured 49. “Reverse racism” is a skewed, reductionist and ultimately inaccurate understanding of racism.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/208009/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/mario-peucker-192086">Mario Peucker</a>, Associate Professor and Principal Research Fellow, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/victoria-university-1175">Victoria University</a> Image credits: Getty Images This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/what-is-reverse-racism-and-whats-wrong-with-the-term-208009">original article</a>.

Caring

"Are you coming back?" ABC loses another host

ABC News Breakfast host Michael Rowland has announced he’s “taking a break” one day after criticising the public broadcaster for failing Stan Grant. Rowland made the announcement live on air that he will be “off on a break” and hosting had been “a real honour”. He later took to Twitter, writing, “Take care and see you soon”. ABC bosses have insisted Rowland is going on a “long-planned holiday” and will return to the show in a month's time. Rowland urged the public broadcaster to call out racism more quickly and effectively after Grant revealed he was leaving Q+A. Grant announced he was taking an indefinite break as host of Q+A on May 19 after he received “racial filth” on social media. Rowland said in response to Grant’s racial abuse, “It hasn't just been weeks and months, it's been years that Stan's been copping this. Racism is a scourge. “We all need to do better and that includes the ABC in calling it out and calling it out more quickly than we have in this country,” he added. That same day Rowland posted a video of Grant’s compelling monologue alongside the caption, “Racism is a scourge. We all need to do better in calling it out, and that includes the ABC.” Finance presenter on ABC News Breakfast Madeline Morris is said to join Rowland’s co-host Lisa Miller for the “next little while”. After announcing his departure, Rowland thanked viewers at home. “I just want to use this semi-regular opportunity to thank all of you, our viewers, you have been fabulous for this show in the time that I've been on the show, it's been great presenting to you,” he said. “If it wasn't for you, the viewers, none of us would be here doing what we do, so it's been a real honour.” One of his shocked co-hosts said, “That sounds kinda final. Are you coming back?", to which Rowland just smiled and didn’t respond. Lisa Millar jokingly replied, “Absolutely! And he's bringing presents because that's the rule: wherever you're travelling to, come back with gifts.” A spokesperson for ABC told Daily Mail Australia, “Michael is on a long-planned holiday and will be back on air 26 June.” TV producer Robert McKnight responded to Rowland’s announcement, saying, “Very sorry to hear this. Michael is one of the best! Good luck to you, Michael.” One Twitter user said the news was “very upsetting”. “First I lose Stan Grant on Q&A. Now I loose you getting me through my mornings,” She added, “Very angry reporters and presenters have been abandoned by their employers.” There has been no suggestion Rowland feels “abandoned” by the ABC. Rowland’s criticising of the ABC followed an appearance on the program by Ian Hamm, chair of the First Nations Foundation. “Stan does his job very well. I think he has taken on the role of poking the bear of Australia where it's uncomfortable from time to time,” Hamm said. “There is risk with that. The pushback of those who don't like it and who perhaps want Aboriginal people to be more compliant and pleasant.” He added, “Stan's not walking away. He's just taking a break as anybody should in this circumstance.” Hamm said 2023 in particular, given Australians voting on an Indigenous Voice to Parliament in November would raise lingering tensions. “Australia does have race relations problems and all it takes is scratching the surface and some very unpleasant sores can be exposed.” “I have great hope for my nation, but I'm also realistic enough to know that this is not an easy journey. “He's not alone and the rest of us are behind him and like him, we're not walking away. And we intend to pursue the right place for our people in this country.” Rowland’s news led another ABC reporter to comment, “Hope you're OK”. Rowland has presented on ABC News Breakfast since 2010 when he joined Virginia Trioli on the sofa. Following his almost 13-year run as host, he’s become a fan favourite on the program. Image credit: Instagram

“We can be better”: Support flows for outgoing ABC host Stan Grant

Australians have banded together in support of veteran journalist Stan Grant, flocking to social media to rally behind the resigning Q+A host after his final show at the helm. Grant’s final panel discussion saw the likes of Labor member Michelle Ananda-Rajah, Liberal member Zoe McKenzie, Independent Senators David Pocock and Tammy Tyrrell, and Greens member Griffith Max Chandler-Mather. The panel of first-term parliamentarians were there to review the Albanese government’s initial year in charge following their federal election win. It marked Grant’s final discussion in the wake of his decision to step back from the show, an announcement that had come following the host’s experiences with racial abuse. The first audience question of the session cut right to the chase, with one member - Anaru August - raising the matter of the abuse directed at Grant. “I have been disgusted by the hatred and abuse that has been fired at Stan Grant because of his colour and the articulation of his professional essence,” August said, before asking the panel “what needs to happen to stop hate speech?" The question drew immediate praise across social media, from both fans of Grant and the show, to Indigenous advocates, and his colleagues at the ABC. It wasn’t the first show of support from the latter, either, with a group of hundreds gathering outside the ABC’s Sydney headquarters that same day to spread the message that “enough for enough”, and that they stood with Stan. "The line in the sand is here, and we will not tolerate our staff being subjected to racial abuse, or any form of abuse. It must stop," ABC News Director Justin Stevens said of the move. "I would say, other sections of the media that play a part in facilitating, encouraging, or drawing attention to this ... need to take a really good hard look at themselves and the role they play. "We all stand with Stan. The abuse he copped is abhorrent and egregious and needs to stop. I'm incredibly sorry that he felt let down by our organisation, that we could have done better by him in defending him. We will do all we can to make up for it from this moment. "It's important we create a safe space for Indigenous and diverse journalists." It was a message continued in feedback over the episode, with not-for-profit inclusivity advocacy group Media Diversity Australia noting that Grant was “One of Media Diversity Australia's earliest and most high-profile supporters … A mentor to countless young reporters, especially Blak reporters … Stan Grant is a tireless veteran journalist that we admire, support, and respect” along with the hashtag “#IStandWithStan”. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> 📣 One of Media Diversity Australia's earliest and most high-profile supporters. 📣 A mentor to countless young reporters, especially Blak reporters. 📣 Stan Grant is a tireless veteran journalist that we admire, support, and respect.<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/IStandWithStan?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#IStandWithStan</a> <a href="https://t.co/rPUSEZ7AfN">https://t.co/rPUSEZ7AfN</a> — Media Diversity AU (@MediaDiverseAU) <a href="https://twitter.com/MediaDiverseAU/status/1660614419859259394?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 22, 2023</a></blockquote> It was a message that continued through the flood of tweets, with Seven News reporter Christie Cooper writing that racism, and “personal attacks on journalists”, were not okay. “#IStandWithStan,” she said, “and I’m so sorry Stan Grant has been so hurt by racial commentary, both in and out of the media, that it’s forced him to walk away. It’s 2023, it’s not good enough.” “Solidarity to the ABC journalists standing in support of their colleague Stan Grant and to all journalists who face racists and racism for doing their job,” one supporter added. “Look at the replies to their tweets. It's not the exception, it is the rule. “Australians need to reckon with our racism.” As Grant himself said when closing his final episode, “to those who have abused me and my family, I would just say - if your aim was to hurt me, well, you’ve succeeded. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry that I must have given you so much cause to hate me … I will get back up. And you can come at me again, and I will meet you with the love of my people. "My people can teach the world to love." It was a moment that resonated with viewers, with one taking to social media to share that ”history will remember this moment. A moment when Stan Grant, his passion as palpable as his pain, spoke poignant truths to Australia & bravely faced his racism with power, love & grace. Solidarity.” <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> "Sometimes, strength is knowing when to say stop." History will remember this moment. A moment when Stan Grant, his passion as palpable as his pain, spoke poignant truths to Australia & bravely faced his racism with power, love & grace. Solidarity. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/QandA?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#QandA</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/IStandWithStan?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#IStandWithStan</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/auspol?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#auspol</a> <a href="https://t.co/fVjUVvZ9GE">pic.twitter.com/fVjUVvZ9GE</a> — Sahar Adatia (@sahar_adatia) <a href="https://twitter.com/sahar_adatia/status/1660644110770814976?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 22, 2023</a></blockquote> Images: Q+A / ABC

Surprise new contender to replace Stan Grant

ABC bosses have reportedly narrowed down the search to find a replacement for Q+A host Stan Grant who is stepping away from presenting duties after being targeted with racist abuse. While many contenders are familiar ABC talent, one frontrunner is perhaps less well known but has been taking on larger roles at the public broadcaster. On May 21, ABC managing director David Anderson apologised to Grant, a Wiradjuri man, who had said that “not one ABC executive” had publicly defended him. There’s no time frame for how long Grant will step down from presenting the program. He said he doesn’t know when - or even if - he will return. This means ABC will have to draft the major league presenters to fill the role in the short term while also possibly announcing a more permanent replacement. According to The Australian’s Media Diary column, the ABC is said to be wary of replacing an Indigenous man, who has stepped down due to racism, with a white man. A frontrunner to take on the Q+A role, at least on an interim basis, is RN Breakfast host Patricia Karvelas. Karvelas is likely to present at least two weeks’ worth of Q+A from May 29, The Australian reported. ABC Radio Melbourne presenter Virginia Trioli has previously done presenting stints on the program and would be a top tier contender to take on Q+A. However, it’s reported she’d unlikely want to take on the gig full time at present. Former ABC radio and presenter of the since cancelled show Frankly, Fran Kelly, is not believed to be in the running. One name being tossed up in the air as a longer term replacement for Grant may be less familiar to some viewers. But Dan Bourchier is highly regarded at the ABC. The Australian reported that Grant already had his eye on Bourchier as a possibility to eventually succeed him given he’s also an Indigenous journalist. Bourchier worked for National Indigenous Television before becoming Sky News’ Northern Territory bureau chief. He began presenting the ABC News in Canberra as well as the ABC Canberra breakfast show in 2017. Bourchier now appears nationwide on the ABC as a co-host of ABC’s political discussion show The Drum and is the broadcaster’s correspondent on the Voice to Parliament. It is believed that some in the ABC are on board for Bourchier to host an upcoming special Q+A from the Garma Indigenous cultural festival, held in the Northern Territory in August if Grant hasn’t returned. Grant had hosted Q+A for less than a year when he chose to step aside. In a lengthy statement, Grant revealed the breaking point was vile criticism directed at him following his discussion of colonisation on the ABC’s coverage of the coronation of King Charles. “Since the King’s coronation, I have seen people in the media lie and distort my words. They have tried to depict me as hate filled. They have accused me of maligning Australia.” He said, “nothing could be further from the truth” and his ancestors would not allow him to be “filled with hate”. “I don’t take time out because of racism … I take time out because we have shown again that our history — our hard truth — is too big, too fragile, and too precious for the media. “I am writing this not because I think it will make a difference. No doubt the haters will twist this, too, and trigger another round of racism,” he said. Grant has also called out the ABC bosses. “Not one ABC executive has publicly refuted the lies written or spoken about me. “I don’t hold any individual responsible; this is an institutional failure.” ABC director of news Justin Stevens released a statement saying Grant has been subjected to “grotesque racist abuse”, including threats to his safety particularly since the ABC’s coronation coverage. “It is abhorrent and unacceptable,” Mr Stevens said. “He was not the instigator of the program. He was asked to participate as a Wiradjuri man to discuss his own family’s experience and the role of the monarchy in Australian in the context of Indigenous history.” The ABC’s managing director David Anderson apologised to the journalist. “Stan Grant has stated that he has not felt publicly supported,” Mr Anderson said. “For this, I apologise to Stan. The ABC endeavours to support its staff in the unfortunate moments when there is external abuse directed at them.” Mr Anderson also agreed to launch an investigation of ABC's responses to racism impacting staff. “The Chair and Deputy Chair of the ABC’s Bonner Committee have asked me to conduct a review to investigate and make recommendations about ABC responses to racism affecting ABC staff, and what we can do better to support staff who face it,” he said. He said he was “dismayed” that Grant had been subjected to such “sickening behaviour”. Image credit: Instagram

“He yelled the N-word”: Stan Grant speaks out on racist attack

Q+A host Stan Grant has opened up about the time he faced unprovoked racist abuse from a stranger outside of the ABC’s headquarters, just days after <a href="https://www.oversixty.com.au/entertainment/tv/there-is-no-excuse-for-what-i-saw-stan-grant-calls-on-the-abc-to-do-better">calling for the broadcaster to “do better”</a>. Grant, a Wiradjuri and Kamilaroi man, was attending the national summit on Aboriginal child safety in Adelaide when conversation turned to the incident involving a passerby and “the N-word”. “I was standing outside the ABC filming … and a young man and his girlfriend walked past me and, as they got close to me, he yelled the N-word loudly at me, right at me,” Grant explained. “So what if I’m on television, so what if I stayed in the White House with [former US President] Barack Obama …. so what if I can phone the Prime Minister [Anthony Albanese] and he’ll pick up the phone, so what? In that moment, that’s what I was to that person. “We don’t know when someone’s going to say that. No matter how successful you are, someone can always cut you down. “Racism can touch us anywhere.” When breaking the story, Grant was addressing an audience of approximately 250 individuals from across Australia - primarily First Nations experts and frontline workers - at the summit hosted by KWY. The group is a South Australia-based Aboriginal organisation who, according to their official website, “cover domestic and family violence, child protection, youth work, kinship care, disability, mentoring, Aboriginal education outcomes, perpetrator intervention, and cultural training and consultancy” across Adelaide and other regional centres. During the summit, Aboriginal Children’s Commissioner April Lawrie called on the South Australian government to take action against the rising rates of Aboriginal children who were being taken into state care, declaring that, “we’re removing [children] but we’re not supporting [families].” “It’s a telling story when [I] go into a school community to engage with young fullas … to find that I couldn’t take a photo because most of the Aboriginal children in that school community were a child in care [and can’t be identified]. “That speaks more than what you see in data. That is the compelling story about what is going on in our Aboriginal communities, what is the relationship of the state with our Aboriginal families.” Reportedly, South Australia has a budget in excess of $500m, and only spends roughly $69m per year on early help services for families. As South Australia’s Child Protection Minister Katrine Hildyard said, the Malinauskas government intends to commit $3.2m to creating a new committee, while increasing the overall budget for family services by $13.4m. “We know that the current system is not working for Aboriginal families and children,” she stated. “Listening to the wisdom and experience of Aboriginal people is utterly fundamental to building a better approach. “This includes our government acknowledging how that legacy of colonisation and experiences of intergenerational trauma and racism influence the issues Aboriginal people face.” Images: Q+A / Youtube

News

Kamahl demands apology over racial tweet

Singer Kamahl has demanded that radio host Philip Adams issue him a public apology over the racial tweet he made in December where Adams dubbed Kamahl an “honorary white” over his relationship with the late cricketer Donald Bradman. Adams claims to have contacted Kamahl, who says he has been “humiliated” by the incident, but the Malaysian-born singer claims the apology never made it to him. “My understanding is that Mr Adams has written to Kamahl apologising for that,” ABC boss David Anderson said of the situation. “Privately written to him, apologising for that.” As reported by The Australian, Kamahl had plenty to say in response to Anderson. “I resent the fact that you have used the incident on public record as a defence of how you and your management have effectively dealt with this issue,” he wrote. “You stated on the public record that Adams had in fact reached out to me to apologise personally for his highly inappropriate comment. “Mr Anderson, let me clarify, the only action that Adams has taken to date in dealing with this issue is to block me on Twitter and double down on his initial slur in which he referred to me as an ‘honorary white’.” “Bradman refused to meet Mandela?” Adams posted in a now deleted tweet. “Why do you think Sir Donald Bradman refused to meet Mandela?” Kamahl responded. “Why do you think the greatest ever 'spotsman' welcomed me at his home from August 1988 every year, till he left us in 2001?” <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> Why do you think Sir Donald Bradman refused to meet Mandela ? Why do you think the greatest ever 'spotsman' welcomed me at his home from August 1988 every year, till he left us in 2001? He also left me letters he wrote every year. Why Phillip ?<a href="https://twitter.com/OfficialKamahl?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@OfficialKamahl</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/PhillipAdams_1?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@PhillipAdams_1</a> — Kamahl AM (@OfficialKamahl) <a href="https://twitter.com/OfficialKamahl/status/1607369967628095489?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 26, 2022</a></blockquote> “Clearly, Kamahl, he made you an Honorary White. Whereas one of the most towering political figures of the 20th century was deemed unworthy of Bradman's approval," Adams fired back. Kamahl went on to tell Adams that responded he “may be white, but oh your soul is black!” The term ‘honorary white’ is said to have originated during South Africa’s Apartheid regime in the 1960s to grant the rights and the privileges of white people to those who would otherwise be considered ‘non-white’ at the time. Many share Kamahl’s belief that Adams’ apology should be as public as his initial words. As reporter Peter Ford said on 6PR Breakfast, “you get the feeling that they told him to write this apology and send it to get him off our backs and it’d all go away, and I don’t think that’s good enough.” Kamahl and his followers have been vocal on Twitter about his desire for an appropriate apology, and the impact of Adams’ words, but only time will tell if Adams is to step up and offer one. Images: Twitter

News

Prince William's godmother resigns amid racism row

Prince William's godmother and Queen Elizabeth's lady-in-waiting has resigned from her royal position after making "unacceptable comments" towards a black guest at Buckingham Palace. The incident reportedly took place earlier this week, when Camilla, Queen Consort was joined by Crown Princess Mary of Denmark, Queen Mathilde of Belgium and Queen Rania of Jordan at an event to highlight domestic violence survivors and charities. Ngozi Fulani, chief executive of Sistah Space, was invited to the afternoon reception at the palace through Safe Lives, a charity the Queen Consort is patron of. The next day, Fulani took to social media where she detailed an exchange with Lady Susan Hussey, saying the woman repeatedly asked where she was "really from", saying "this event remains a blur after the violation". <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> Mixed feelings about yesterday's visit to Buckingham Palace. 10 mins after arriving, a member of staff, Lady SH, approached me, moved my hair to see my name badge. The conversation below took place. The rest of the event is a blur. Thanks <a href="https://twitter.com/ManduReid?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ManduReid</a> & <a href="https://twitter.com/SuzanneEJacob?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SuzanneEJacob</a> for support🙏🏾 <a href="https://t.co/OUbQKlabyq">pic.twitter.com/OUbQKlabyq</a> — Sistah Space (@Sistah_Space) <a href="https://twitter.com/Sistah_Space/status/1597854380115767296?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 30, 2022</a></blockquote> The palace released a statement saying it took the matter "extremely seriously", labelling it "unacceptable" and confirming the staff member had stepped aside. "In this instance, unacceptable and deeply regrettable comments have been made," a statement from Buckingham Palace on Wednesday afternoon (Thursday morning AEDT) said. "We have reached out to Ngozi Fulani on this matter, and are inviting her to discuss all elements of her experience in person if she wishes." "In the meantime, the individual concerned would like to express her profound apologies for the hurt caused and has stepped aside from her honorary role with immediate effect." Prince William's spokesperson almost made a statement to the BBC, saying "Racism has no place in our society." "The comments were unacceptable, and it is right that the individual has stepped aside with immediate effect," they said. As the Palace claims it has reached out to Fulani, she told London radio station LBC and UK newspaper The Independent she hadn't heard from Buckingham Palace yet. Hussey, who served as Queen Elizabeth's lady-in-waiting for over 60 years was given a role in the royal household by King Charles after his mother's death. Image credits: Getty Images

News

"Racism at its finest": Karl slammed for comments about Qatari women

Karl Stefanovic has come under fire for "mocking" the lack of women present at World Cup events in Qatar. After The Today Show posted a clip of a segment about the games in Doha on TikTok, a Lebanese-Australian business owner slammed the hosts for their display of "racism at its finest". Rami Ykmour, co-founder of popular restaurant chain Rashays, shared a clip of himself watching the video, in which the Today hosts are discussing the "strange" atmosphere in Doha was with 9News sports reporter Clint Stanaway. “I’ve been to World Cups before and it’s just a different atmosphere, I guess,” Stanaway said. In response, Stefanovic sarcastically said, “It’s good to see a lot of women to see it enjoying it over there too, Clinty.” “There weren’t too many in the stands,” replied Stanaway. Laughing, co-host Ally Langdon said, “Haven’t spotted one there yet.” Replaying the video, Mr Ykmour disagreed with the comments and called on Stefanovic to apologise. “I’ve watched the soccer and there’s plenty of women. Not to mention the racism,” he said. “Any chance to punch anyone of Middle Eastern background, they will, and they’ve got to understand there’s a lot of us out here and that’s not the way we think, that’s not the way we behave. “That is just pure, pure racism.” The comments under Mr Ykmour's video agree with his sentiment, with many saying they had attended games where many female fans were present in the crowd. “Literally sat next to a Qatari woman cheering with her son, and directly behind three Qatari women, not to mention the whole stadium,” wrote one comment. “I was at a game yesterday and there were plenty of women around me!!,” shared another. While photos taken of the crowd at World Cup games have shown female fans in the minority, this may be due to Qatar's rules around male guardianship of women, which have been criticised by the Human Rights Watch (HRW) in the past. In a 2021 report released by the HRW, the non-governmental organisation called attention to rules which state Qatari women must obtain permission from male guardians to “marry, study abroad on government scholarships, work in many government jobs, travel abroad until certain ages, and receive some forms of reproductive health care”. Senior women’s rights researcher at Human Rights Watch, Rothna Begum said that the laws, regulations and policies restricted the ability of women to live “full, productive, and independent lives”. Image credits: The Today Show <div class="media image" style="caret-color: #000000; color: #000000; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration: none; box-sizing: inherit; display: flex; flex-direction: column; align-items: center; width: 705.202209px; margin-bottom: 24px;"> </div>

Locking up kids has serious mental health impacts and contributes to further reoffending

This article contains information on violence experienced by First Nations young people in the Australian carceral system. There are mentions of racist terms, and this piece also mentions self harm, trauma and suicide. The ABC Four Corners report “<a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-11-14/locking-up-kids:-australias-failure-to-protect/101652954" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Locking up Kids</a>” detailed the horrific conditions for young Aboriginal people in the juvenile justice system in Western Australia. The report was nothing new. In 2016, <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-07-25/australias-shame-promo/7649462" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Four Corners</a> detailed the brutalisation of Aboriginal people in the Northern Territory’s Don Dale Youth Detention Centre, in its episode “Australia’s Shame”. Also in 2016, <a href="https://www.amnesty.org.au/amnesty-international-welcomes-queensland-youth-detention-review/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Amnesty International</a> detailed the abuse children were receiving in Queensland’s juvenile detention facilities. Children should be playing, swimming, running and exploring life. They do not belong behind bars. Yet, on any given day in 2020-21, an average of <a href="https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/youth-justice/youth-justice-in-australia-2020-21/contents/summary" target="_blank" rel="noopener">4,695</a> young people were incarcerated in Australia. Most of the young people incarcerated are Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander. Despite Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people in WA making up just <a href="https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/youth-justice/youth-justice-in-australia-2020-21/contents/state-and-territory-fact-sheets/western-australia" target="_blank" rel="noopener">6.7%</a> of the population, they account for <a href="https://www.oics.wa.gov.au/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Banksia-Hill-2020-002.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">more than 70%</a> of youth locked up in Perth’s Banksia Hill Juvenile Detention Centre. <a href="https://search.informit.org/doi/abs/10.3316/agispt.20211109056541" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The reasons</a> so many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are detained are linked to the impacts of colonisation, such as intergenerational trauma, ongoing racism, discrimination, and unresolved issues related to self-determination. The Four Corners documentary alleged children in detention were exposed to abuse, torture, solitary confinement and other degrading treatment such as “folding”, which involves bending a person’s legs behind them before sitting on them – we saw a grown man sitting on a child’s legs in this way in the documentary. The documentary also found Aboriginal young people were more likely to be held in solitary confinement, leading to the young people feeling helpless. Racism was also used as a form of abuse, with security calling the young detainees apes and monkeys. One of the young men detained at Banksia Hill expressed the treatment he received made him consider taking his own life. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> No action taken against Don Dale guards over 'excessive force' in fresh Four Corners vision <a href="https://t.co/RdJgN8vQhu">https://t.co/RdJgN8vQhu</a> — Sarah Collard (@Sarah_Collard_) <a href="https://twitter.com/Sarah_Collard_/status/1592451372808802305?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 15, 2022</a></blockquote> How does incarceration impact young people’s mental health? Many young people enter youth detention with pre-existing neurocognitive impairments (such as <a href="https://theconversation.com/indigenous-youth-with-foetal-alcohol-spectrum-disorder-need-indigenous-run-alternatives-to-prison-56615" target="_blank" rel="noopener">foetal alcohol spectrum disorder</a>), trauma, and poor mental health. More than <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10398560902948696" target="_blank" rel="noopener">80%</a> of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people in a Queensland detention centre reported mental health problems. Data from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare revealed that more than <a href="https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/youth-justice/young-people-in-child-protection/summary" target="_blank" rel="noopener">30%</a> of young people in detention were survivors of abuse or neglect. Rather than supporting the most vulnerable within our community, the Australian justice system is <a href="https://search.informit.org/doi/abs/10.3316/agispt.20211109056541" target="_blank" rel="noopener">imprisoning traumatised</a> and often developmentally compromised young people. <a href="https://reader.elsevier.com/reader/sd/pii/S027273581300010X?token=9CBCD682BF76BBE308B2073C2A3980D63745C157813CAC79F171AA4577C849EC40D0B848B6DB0D009AFACC05B8BC6185&originRegion=us-east-1&originCreation=20221116031322" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Research</a> has shown pre-existing mental health problems are likely exacerbated by experiences during incarceration, such as isolation, boredom and victimisation. This inhumane treatment brings about retraumatisation of the effects of colonisation and racism, with feelings of <a href="https://www.parliament.vic.gov.au/images/stories/committees/SCLSI/Youth_Justice_System/Submissions/Submission_44-Parkville_College.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">hopelessness</a>, worthlessness and <a href="https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Senate/Community_Affairs/completed_inquiries/2004-07/inst_care/report2/c06" target="_blank" rel="noopener">low self-esteem</a>. Youth detention is also associated with an <a href="https://www.ranzcp.org/news-policy/news/detention-of-children-in-adult-prisons-must-stop#:%7E:text='Youth%20detention%20is%20associated%20with,substance%20use%2C%20and%20behavioural%20disorders." target="_blank" rel="noopener">increased risk</a> of suicide, psychiatric disorders, and drug and alcohol abuse. Locking young people up during their <a href="https://www.cypp.unsw.edu.au/sites/ypp.unsw.edu.au/files/Cunneen%20%282017%29%20Arguments%20for%20raising%20the%20minimum%20age%20of%20criminal%20responsibility.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">crucial years</a> of development also has long-term impacts. These include poor emotional development, poor education outcomes, and worse mental health <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5260153/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">in adulthood</a>. As adults, post-release Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/j.1467-842X.2004.tb00629.x" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ten times</a> more likely to die than the general population, with suicide the leading cause of death. You don’t have to look far to see the devastating impacts of incarceration on mental health. Just last year, there were <a href="https://www.parliament.wa.gov.au/Hansard/hansard.nsf/0/A4A8FAAE33FDD6BE48258844001C7E29/$File/C41%20S1%2020220511%20All.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">320 reports</a> of self-harm at Banksia Hill, WA’s only youth detention centre. Locking up kids increases the likelihood of reoffending Imprisoning young offenders is also associated with future <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S027273581300010X?casa_token=TJ6WoQJnWnsAAAAA:NKTzeYv-LJcHuwT7Xs5fxeHUx9lHsKzVlQDpLpWPyG7u4KAXb1866s-sdupwbQmcbPR93qArg99O" target="_blank" rel="noopener">offending behaviours</a> and <a href="https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Committees_Exposed/atsia/sentencing/report/chapter2" target="_blank" rel="noopener">continued contact with the justice system</a>. Without proper rehabilitation and support post-release, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young peoples often return to the same conditions that created the patterns of offending in the first place. Earlier this year, the head of Perth Children’s Court, Judge Hylton Quail <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-02-10/hylton-quail-slams-conditions-banksia-hill-detention-centre/100819262" target="_blank" rel="noopener">condemned</a> the treatment of a young person in detention at Banksia Hill, stating: <blockquote> When you treat a damaged child like an animal, they will behave like an animal […] When you want to make a monster, this is how you do it. </blockquote> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> Today marks 5 years since the recommendations of the Royal Commission into the Detention and Protection of Children in the NT, which recommended closing Don Dale. We now have record numbers of Aboriginal children incarcerated due to punitive bail laws introduced last year. <a href="https://t.co/buxMFFucW7">pic.twitter.com/buxMFFucW7</a> — NAAJA (@NAAJA_NT) <a href="https://twitter.com/NAAJA_NT/status/1593059263223844864?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 17, 2022</a></blockquote> What needs to be done? There needs to be substantive change in how young people who come in contact with the justice system are treated. We need governments to commit, under <a href="https://www.closingthegap.gov.au/national-agreement" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Closing the Gap</a>, to whole-of-system change through: <ol> <li> recognising children should not be criminalised at ten years old. The <a href="https://raisetheage.org.au/campaign" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Raise the Age</a> campaign is calling for the minimum age of responsibility to be raised to 14. Early prevention and intervention <a href="https://search.informit.org/doi/abs/10.3316/agispt.20211109056541" target="_blank" rel="noopener">approaches</a> are necessary here. Children who are at risk of offending should be appropriately supported, to reduce pathways to offending. </li> <li> an approach addressing why young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are locked up in such great numbers is required, driven by respective First Nations communities. This means investing in housing, health, education, transport and other essential services and crucial aspects of a person’s life. An example of this is found in a pilot program in New South Wales called <a href="https://www.justreinvest.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/JRNSW-I-Reinvestment-Forum-I-Report.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Redefining Reinvestment</a>, which tackled the social determinants of incarceration using a community approach. </li> <li> future solutions must be trauma-informed and led by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. </li> </ol> Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children are not born criminals. They are born into systems that fail them, in a country that all too often turns a blind eye before locking them up. The Australian government needs to work with First Nations communities to ensure the safety and wellbeing of all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, including our future generations. If this article has caused distress, please contact one of these helplines: <a href="https://www.13yarn.org.au/?gclid=Cj0KCQiAsdKbBhDHARIsANJ6-jfrUNMB9So6Gd1ICVQPd6uvGbfEaceXNR0BNYnEVCoxnMs7eiMmv20aAjDaEALw_wcB">13yarn</a>, <a href="https://www.lifeline.org.au/">Lifeline</a>, <a href="https://headspace.org.au/?gclid=Cj0KCQiAsdKbBhDHARIsANJ6-jdx8qmNF8hzPZNjURGbT9af0wT_xGUjDU26wX5Eftykygb35_OPLccaAp5uEALw_wcB">Headspace</a><img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/194657/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> Writen by Summer May Finlay, Ee Pin Chang, Jemma Collova and Pat Dudgeon. Republished with permission from <a href="https://theconversation.com/locking-up-kids-has-serious-mental-health-impacts-and-contributes-to-further-reoffending-194657" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Conversation</a>. Image: Getty Images

Mind

“I’ve tasted the faintest bitter edge of racism”: Ash Barty admits to being racially abused

Ash Barty has confessed that she’s been on the receiving end of “bitter racism” after finding out about her Indigenous heritage. In her autobiography, My Dream Time, which will be published on November 2, Barty opens up about the moment she found out about her family’s past. The former tennis player said it was a difficult moment when her father searched for the truth and eventually told Barty and her sister which then led to “vile racism”. “I’ve seen glimpses and tasted the faintest bitter edge of racism” she wrote. “I’d win a Deadly Award but get vilified on line. I’d become a Tennis Australia First Nations Ambassador and then find some muppet calling my heritage into question.” The three-time Grand Slam winner said there was still a lot of work and educated needed to address the importance of Indigenous Australians. “There was no need for us to talk about that in the moment but it was certainly something that confused me a little bit as to why someone would criticise something that is so personal to me,” she told NewsCorp. “Looking back now it’s all about the education and giving people the tools to understand others and appreciate what came before us.” Barty went on to reveal that her trip to Central Australia where she worked with First Nations children was when she was convinced of a connection with them. “If anything it has just reassured to me that the path I want to go down in the future is to try and help First Nations youth around the country.” Eventually, Barty found out of her Indigenous heritage when her father Rob traced back his roots. At 13 he was told by a cousin that there was Indigenous heritage in the family but his parents denied it, claiming their connection was only to Māoris in New Zealand. Rob did not accept that and went on to trace back his family history where he found out that his great grandmother was an Indigenous Australian who married a white man. Barty’s dad sat her and her sister down when she was just seven and told them the truth. The family then went on to record their names with the Ngarigu Nation. “It was not a conversation his parents could have with him,” she wrote. “To his parents, Aboriginal ancestry was something to be ashamed of and not something he should be curious about.” Images: Instagram

Family & Pets

“A serious chip on her shoulder”: Pauline Hanson refuses to see ‘foreign’ doctors

Pauline Hanson has revealed that she refuses to be treated by doctors trained outside of Australia, claiming that she doesn’t trust them and that they are not up to Australian standards. The controversial leader of the right-wing One Nation party made the revelation while slamming a proposal from Health Minister Brad Hazzard to remove barriers preventing overseas doctors from working in Australia. Mr Hazzard told the <a href="https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/nsw/brad-hazzard-slams-barbed-wire-fence-blocking-foreign-doctors-from-easing-gp-crisis/news-story/c8c2564f2705459be3c745f9fca74c22" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Daily Telegraph</a> that the “barbed wire fence” of red tape medical graduates trained overseas face to practice in New South Wales has forced hundreds of doctors to quit the industry, even as the country faces a GP shortage that risks creating a healthcare “apocalypse”. “This should be ringing alarm bells in the offices of the Federal Health Department and the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP),” he said. Speaking to Sky News, Hanson questioned the red tape Mr Hazzard was referring to and went on to claim that his plan would lower the standards in healthcare. “Lowering the standard again which I believe that if you do that and allow these foreign doctors here that are not up to our standards,” she said. “Well then you're going to play Russian roulette with people's lives.” “I personally will not go to a foreign doctor because I don't trust ... the system when I know they've allowed them into this country and most of them don't pass the first test.” To practise medicine in Australia, doctors who have earned medical degrees from overseas institutions need to be registered with the <a href="https://www.medicalboard.gov.au/Registration/International-Medical-Graduates.aspx">Australian Medical Council</a>, which can involve passing a written exam and clinical exam, including demonstrating a minimum standard of English speaking skills through proof of education in English or passing one of several exams. Hanson claimed that a lot of overseas doctors had to take the test “a couple of times” and that many couldn’t pass because “they can’t speak English” - though it is unclear which test she was referring to. “You can't be a doctor in this country if you can't communicate with the patient. It's not good at all,” she said. “If we allow these foreign doctors in that can't pass the test, they've already lowered the standard twice.” To combat this lowering of standards, Hanson said the solution should be paying GPs more to prevent them from moving into specialist areas to get a higher wage. “We've got to stop draining doctors from other countries and bringing them out here to Australia because, you know, we have a world standard in (medicine),” she continued. “The people (Australia is) bringing over from overseas, we're lowering our standards.” Her comments have come under fire across social media, with many rallying to support internationally-trained doctors and praising them for the care they have provided. “Pauline Hanson yet again demonstrated prejudice against foreign trained doctors. Maybe we should fast track our current medical students? Oh that would be lowering standards then as well! And who still has mandates? Misleading bigoted crap once again from this troublemaker!” one person noted. “To all my wonderful colleagues, Australian or from other countries, who Pauline Hanson might consider foreign. I am so sorry. You are wonderful,” one emergency physician <a href="https://twitter.com/KristinJBoyle/status/1579640575925837824" target="_blank" rel="noopener">tweeted</a>. “Our health system depends on you. Thank you for working alongside me and for treating me and my family. 🙏” <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> My GP came to Australia from overseas, he is an excellent communicator and caring doctor, I thank him for picking up my cancer. What Pauline Hanson is doing is spewing racist bile based on her own prejudices. She is a truly awful human being with a serious chip on her shoulder — Dr Anthony (Tony) Moore 💉💉💉💉 (@PerpetualWinger) <a href="https://twitter.com/PerpetualWinger/status/1579652006733828102?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 11, 2022</a></blockquote> Another doctor wrote: “My GP came to Australia from overseas, he is an excellent communicator and caring doctor, I thank him for picking up my cancer. “What Pauline Hanson is doing is spewing racist bile based on her own prejudices. She is a truly awful human being with a serious chip on her shoulder.” Image: Sky News

News

Channel Nine presenter racially vilified

Tracy Vo has been the subject of disgusting racial comments while out with her partner for breakfast. The Channel Nine Perth news presenter was enjoying breakfast with her boyfriend Liam Connolly when she was approached by a random lady who then attacked her racially. She shared the awful experience on Twitter, but said she refused to let the incident put her down after her partner stepped in. “To the lady who reminded us that intolerant and close minded people still exist, sorry for ruining your day,” she wrote. “When you tried to ruin a lovely breakfast I was having with my partner at our local cafe yesterday, you didn’t. “When you labelled my family communists, I laughed it off. “When you tried to convince my partner, who’s of Irish heritage, to ‘not be had by this Asian woman’, he politely asked you to move along. “He was calm and I was smiling…sorry lady, we won’t be had by you.” <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> To the lady who reminded us that intolerant and close minded people still exist, sorry for ruining your day. When you tried to ruin a lovely breakfast I was having with my partner at our local cafe yesterday, you didn’t. When you labelled my family communists, I laughed it off… — Tracy Vo (@Tracy_Vo) <a href="https://twitter.com/Tracy_Vo/status/1551717376806137856?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 25, 2022</a></blockquote> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> When you tried to convince my partner, who’s of Irish heritage, to “not be had by this Asian woman,” he politely asked you to move along. He was calm and I was smiling… sorry lady, we won’t be had by you ☺️ — Tracy Vo (@Tracy_Vo) <a href="https://twitter.com/Tracy_Vo/status/1551717534914605056?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 25, 2022</a></blockquote> Tracy received a lot of support for her stance with many apologising that she had to go through that. “I'm so sorry this happened to you TVo. Absolutely vile,” her fellow Channel Nine colleague Natalia Cooper wrote. “Can’t believe this s*** still happens. You are a star for remaining so calm my babes. More class than anyone! Sending you love,” Channel Nine Perth weather presenter Scherri-Lee Biggs commented. “I am so sorry this happened. It really shouldn't in this day and age, but there's no knowing what people have been subjected to in their own lives to make them think this way. Love your positive attitude,” another commented. “Good on you for keeping calm! Stay strong!” someone else wrote. Images: Instagram

"Stop Asian Hate": The Project under fire over "racist" joke

The Project has come under fire, receiving a wave of backlash over a “racist” joke that was aimed at a member of South Korean boyband, BTS. An online backlash spurred by the band’s loyal army of fans led the hashtag “Stop Asian Hate” to trend on Twitter after a segment aired on Sunday night that used manipulative editing to suggest one of the band members had Covid-19 while attending the Grammys. It showed the group being asked by Grammys host Trevor Noah how they were feeling, to which they replied, “great”. The segment then showed footage of band member Kim “V” Tae-hyung miming into his hand, over which the show dubbed coughing sounds and cartoonish Covid-19 particles coming out of his mouth. “K-Pop sensation BTS dropped in, dismissing their very recent battles with Covid-19,” Project host Chrissie Swan narrated over the segment. One of the band members had tested positive for Covid-19 on March 27, but was cleared to play at the Grammys after quarantining and returning a negative test. BTS fans were up in arms over the segment, which they took to suggest Covid was spread more by Asian people. “Wtf – we’re Asian doesn’t mean we spread COVID,” one fan said. An Australian-based fan group for Tae-hyung encouraged its almost 6500 followers to file a formal complaint against the show. “A popular Australian show has resorted to cheap, derogatory editing & racism in the name of comedy,” it said. “Racism is never funny in any situation. We condemn these microaggressions being demonstrated towards Asian artists & demand a takedown of the post & a formal apology.” Image: Getty / Network 10

News

Anti-racist street signs slammed in wealthy suburbs

Residents of some of Australia’s wealthiest suburbs <a href="https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/outrage-over-woke-anti-racist-street-signs-in-wealthy-sydney-suburbs/ar-AATR1gL?ocid=hplocalnews" target="_blank" rel="noopener">have called</a> for the removal of “woke” anti-racism street signs, despite residents in other areas with the signs having zero complaints.Red signs with the phrase “#RacismNOTWelcome” displayed in white text were erected in several wealthy eastern suburbs within the Woollahra Local Government Area (LGA), including Paddington, Rose Bay, Bellevue Hill and Double Bay.<blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background: #FFF;border: 0;border-radius: 3px;margin: 1px;max-width: 540px;min-width: 326px;padding: 0;width: calc(100% - 2px)" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/COY25tALOnc/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"><div style="padding: 16px"><div style="flex-direction: row;align-items: center"><div style="background-color: #f4f4f4;border-radius: 50%;flex-grow: 0;height: 40px;margin-right: 14px;width: 40px"> </div><div style="flex-direction: column;flex-grow: 1;justify-content: center"><div style="background-color: #f4f4f4;border-radius: 4px;flex-grow: 0;height: 14px;margin-bottom: 6px;width: 100px"> </div><div style="background-color: #f4f4f4;border-radius: 4px;flex-grow: 0;height: 14px;width: 60px"> </div></div></div><div style="padding: 19% 0"> </div><div style="height: 50px;margin: 0 auto 12px;width: 50px"> </div><div style="padding-top: 8px"><div style="color: #3897f0;font-family: Arial,sans-serif;font-size: 14px;font-style: normal;font-weight: 550;line-height: 18px">View this post on Instagram</div></div><div style="padding: 12.5% 0"> </div><div style="flex-direction: row;margin-bottom: 14px;align-items: center"><div><div style="background-color: #f4f4f4;border-radius: 50%;height: 12.5px;width: 12.5px"> </div><div style="background-color: #f4f4f4;height: 12.5px;width: 12.5px;flex-grow: 0;margin-right: 14px;margin-left: 2px"> </div><div style="background-color: #f4f4f4;border-radius: 50%;height: 12.5px;width: 12.5px"> </div></div><div style="margin-left: 8px"><div style="background-color: #f4f4f4;border-radius: 50%;flex-grow: 0;height: 20px;width: 20px"> </div><div style="width: 0;height: 0;border-top: 2px solid transparent;border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4;border-bottom: 2px solid transparent"> </div></div><div style="margin-left: auto"><div style="width: 0px;border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4;border-right: 8px solid transparent"> </div><div style="background-color: #f4f4f4;flex-grow: 0;height: 12px;width: 16px"> </div><div style="width: 0;height: 0;border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4;border-left: 8px solid transparent"> </div></div></div><div style="flex-direction: column;flex-grow: 1;justify-content: center;margin-bottom: 24px"><div style="background-color: #f4f4f4;border-radius: 4px;flex-grow: 0;height: 14px;margin-bottom: 6px;width: 224px"> </div><div style="background-color: #f4f4f4;border-radius: 4px;flex-grow: 0;height: 14px;width: 144px"> </div></div><a style="color: #c9c8cd;font-family: Arial,sans-serif;font-size: 14px;font-style: normal;font-weight: normal;line-height: 17px;text-decoration: none" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/COY25tALOnc/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by Racism Not Welcome (@racismnotwelcome)</a></div></blockquote>The initiative started by Woollahra Council as part of a city-wide campaign last year to raise awareness of the issue.But, local residents have complained that the signs inadvertently make it seem like the suburb is racist, while Liberal councillors have demanded the signs be ripped down.“Locals say the signs give a false impression that Woollahra locals are racists, while there has been no evidence presented to that fact,” a motion before the local council read.“The signs do not properly represent our community and are simply an appropriation from some other community, or other local government area, where racism may be rife.”Appearing on 2GB radio on Tuesday, Woollahra councillor Mary-Lou Jarvis said, “Lecturing people with street signs is not going to cut it.“I was overwhelmed from people around the area when the signs went up. There was an incredible diversity in the people that contacted me.”Councillor Jarvis shared one example of a Jewish woman who reached out and asked for the signs to be taken down.“She was the first that said to me, ‘This is woke-ism gone mad.’“This is all about us taking personal responsibility.”Three Liberal councillors initially proposed for all 12 signs to be removed from the LGA, which was followed by a compromise to move the signs from residential streets to public areas such as parks and transport hubs.However, the compromise failed after Councillor Jarvis insisted the signs be removed from the area entirely.“This has divided the council, it’s divided the community,” she said. “It’s wokeism writ large and has created division where there wasn’t any before. This is all about making people feel good rather than taking actions to reduce racism.”<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Now having to argue to keep Racism Not Welcome signs because some people don’t like them on their street 🤦🏼‍♀️🤦🏼‍♀️🤦🏼‍♀️ <a href="https://t.co/LHv7Ng9pcE">pic.twitter.com/LHv7Ng9pcE</a>— Nicola Grieve (@nicolagrieve) <a href="https://twitter.com/nicolagrieve/status/1493173119162658819?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 14, 2022</a></blockquote>Greens councillor Nicola Grieve said she was “flabbergasted” by the opposition to the signs and that there was definitely racism in the area.“I think it’s completely obscene and absurd. There is clearly racism in this electorate: I’ve heard it,” she said.“These signs send a message that we are standing up for people of colour and don’t tolerate racism.”When the issue was debated on Monday night, Woollahra Municipal Council <a href="https://www.theage.com.au/national/nsw/push-to-remove-woke-anti-racist-street-signs-from-woollahra-fails-20220215-p59wkk.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">voted 8-7</a> to keep the signs in their current locations.The #RacismNOTWelcome street sign campaign, spearheaded by former Socceroo player Craig Foster, began in Sydney’s inner west before spreading to other council areas, including Woollahra.<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">I asked <a href="https://twitter.com/Craig_Foster?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Craig_Foster</a> today if opposing the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/racismNOTwelcome?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#racismNOTwelcome</a> road signs in <a href="https://twitter.com/woollahramc?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@woollahramc</a> indicates to him that racism does exist? This is what he had to say: "Some or all councillors here say there is NO racism here...well...we should beg to differ"<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Woollahra?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Woollahra</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Sydney?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Sydney</a> <a href="https://t.co/GJFaJfLnsS">pic.twitter.com/GJFaJfLnsS</a>— Nabil Al Nashar (@NabilAlNashar) <a href="https://twitter.com/NabilAlNashar/status/1493521809509351427?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 15, 2022</a></blockquote>Foster shared his disappointment at the backlash with <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/woollahra-councillors-push-to-remove-anti-racism-signs-20220214-p59w7n.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Sydney Morning Herald</a>, telling the publication that the signs send a powerful message to everyone entering a council area that racism won’t be tolerated.“A minority saying they feel confronted by the very word ‘racism’ is as old as Australia itself,” he said.“It is a disappointment for our whole community when any LGA demonstrates an unwillingness to commit to a more truthful conversation.”Image: @racismnotwelcome (Instagram)

Real Estate

Entire house in ashes after alleged firebombing

After migrating to Australia for a better life, one couple’s dream has been marred by the bad behaviour of one of their neighbours.Appearing on A Current Affair, Syed and Shilebeth said they were subjected to racial slurs by said neighbour, before their dream home was allegedly firebombed.“People say it’s just like material things - no, we built there day by day,” Shilebeth told the program.The couple said they experienced life’s “ups and downs” during their time in their Lalor Park home in Sydney’s west, which they bought after meeting in their “college days”.“It meant everything to us. This is a home that we worked for … this was our dream home,” Syed said.<img src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/2022/02/house-firebombing1.jpg" alt="" width="1280" height="720" />Syed and Shilebeth lost everything when their home burnt down in an alleged firebombing after they copped racial abuse from their next-door neighbour. Image: A Current AffairBut, the couple said they began having problems with their next-door neighbour, Trent Constantine, in the past few months.“One Saturday he was just smashing the fence and I said, ‘Trent’ - his name is Trent - and I said, ‘why are you smashing the fence?’,” Syred recalled.“He said, ‘this is none of your business’. I said, ‘no, this is our shared fence, you shouldn’t be smashing this fence’ and he didn’t stop it.”Later, in mid-January, Shilebeth filmed another encounter where Mr Constantine can be heard saying, “Go back to where you belong”.<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Tonight on A Current Affair, the ugly face of racism in our suburbs. If this isn't fiery enough, what happened next is beyond belief. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/9ACA?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#9ACA</a> <a href="https://t.co/cV8jft0eFb">pic.twitter.com/cV8jft0eFb</a>— A Current Affair (@ACurrentAffair9) <a href="https://twitter.com/ACurrentAffair9/status/1490867983748456449?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 8, 2022</a></blockquote>After Shilebeth accused him of being racist, Mr Constantine replied, “No I’m not racist, I’m purist. You don’t belong here go back to your country. You illegal f***ing immigrant.”But Mr Constantine didn’t stop there, arming himself with a knife and then drinking pig’s blood in front of Shilebeth, referring to Syed’s Muslim faith.“It’s all good, in our country it’s tradition to lick the pork blood,” Mr Constantine said.“What’s wrong with you?” she asked.He went on to say he doesn’t like people who “do not belong in this country”.“F*** off on your boat and go home to where you belong, because it’s not your country,” he said.After the incident, Shilebeth called the police and went with officers to make a statement.While she was at the station, Shilebeth received a devastating call from another neighbour who said: “Shelly your house is on fire.”Syed, who was at work at the time, raced home to see their house alight.“I parked my car in the middle of the street and I’ve seen in front of my own eyes, it was burning in front of my eyes - my house,” Syed said.After their neighbour Gary heard glass breaking and an “explosion”, he went out to the front of his house and saw “flames through the trees” before calling Triple Zero.“{It’s) really bad you know they’ve lost everything… unfortunately they weren’t insured,” Gary said.Having stopped paying their home insurance in 2019 because they could no longer afford it, the couple have lost almost all of their belongings - including items for Shilebeth’s photography business - and have been forced to sell the land and move on.“The only good thing is our pets (were) rescued,” Syed said.Though police are yet to charge anyone over the suspected firebombing, they have issued an arrest warrant for Mr Constantine for an alleged intimidation offence.<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Have you seen 44-year-old Trent Constantine? He is wanted on an outstanding arrest warrant. Known to frequent Lalor Park. Anyone with info please call Crime Stoppers 1800 333 000. <a href="https://t.co/HnNh4odMfD">pic.twitter.com/HnNh4odMfD</a>— NSW Police Force (@nswpolice) <a href="https://twitter.com/nswpolice/status/1490963780939182085?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 8, 2022</a></blockquote><a href="https://9now.nine.com.au/a-current-affair/aussie-couple-film-neighbours-alleged-racist-comments/888c4072-c1f2-4592-b097-d0d5e5788b3c" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A Current Affair</a>’s Hannah Sinclair spoke to Mr Constantine’s mother, who insisted her son had nothing to do with the fire.She also said he wasn’t around or on the run from police.As for Siyed and Shilebeth, “I’m still very resilient but it’s very hard at my age to get back on my feet, to start again - you know, rebuild the house,” Syed said.A <a href="https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-shilebeth-and-robbie-rebuild-her-home" target="_blank" rel="noopener">GoFundMe fundraiser</a> has been set up by Shilebeth’s cousin, with the aim of raising $10,000 to help them get back on their feet.As of Thursday, February 8, the fundraiser has received more than $8,000 in donations.Image: A Current Affair

Real Estate

Vince Sorrenti slammed for on-air racist Māori joke

Comedian and former TV host Vince Sorrenti has come under fire after making a racist joke towards Māori live on the radio. Appearing as a guest on the 2GB radio show hosted by Rob Duckworth, Vince began innocently parodying the lyrics of the Dean Martin classic That's Amore. It started off tamely, as he sung the words, "When you swim near the sand and an eel bites your hand, that's a moray." "When you mix up some tuna and cheese and some cream that's a mornay." However, the joke soon turned racist as he took a swing at Māori people. "When you're hit by a thug in a tough Kiwi pub that's a Māori. But I digress," he said before he and the others on air laughed. Host Rob Duckworth then said, "There ya go! Vince Sorrenti is on fire already." The comments have struck a nerve with Māori living in Australia, with one Māori warned living in Sydney telling the <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10306391/Australian-comedian-Vince-Sorrentis-Amore-2GB-radio-singalong-sparks-Maori-row.html" target="_blank">Daily Mail</a> that the comments were "definitely not acceptable". "He needs to reconsider his material in the future. Maybe in his day it was acceptable. Back in the dark ages maybe it would have been fine, but nowadays you have to consider things other than people's ethnicity." "It's not acceptable. It never has been, but it's really not acceptable now." Vince Sorrenti has apologised for his "joke", saying through a spokesperson that he admits times have changed. "Those Kiwis are right," Sorrenti's spokesman said. "That humour is outdated and unacceptable." The spokesman said that Sorrenti was "embarrassed and very remorseful". "It's a very silly and meaningless ditty and was never intended to hurt or offend. He is going to apologise on air this weekend." "When he was introduced on-air the other night, they played the That's Amore music and he sang along without thinking. It was wrong and he is sorry. I'm surprised he even remembered the words. "Believe it or not he even sang that parody on TV in New Zealand all those years ago. It's a reminder of how much times have changed." Image credits: Facebook - Vince Sorrenti

News

White mum accused of trafficking biracial daughter

A US woman has accused Southwest Airlines of racial profiling, claiming she was accused of trafficking her biracial daughter while they travelled together. Data journalist Mary MacCarthy told CNN that she and her daughter Moira were flying from Los Angeles to Denver after receiving news that Ms MacCarthy’s brother had passed away. After making a short stop in San Jose, Ms MacCarthy said the pair discovered they weren’t sitting together on their second flight. “I asked flight attendants if we could be seated together but they told us we’d each have to take a middle seat,” Ms MacCarthy <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.9news.com.au/world/southwest-airlines-mum-says-airline-thought-she-was-trafficking-her-biracial-daughter/b68a09d8-0b95-4a1c-97a9-35abd681b290" target="_blank">explained</a>. “So with their permission I asked other passengers if they would kindly move so we could be together, especially as my daughter was grieving, and they did. People are nice.” But when they arrived in Denver, Ms MacCarthy said they were greeted on the runway by two police officers. “I got quite a shock; having lost my brother the night before, I thought that someone else in my family had died and that police had been sent to deliver the news,” she wrote in an email to the airline’s media team, which was included in the police report. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> We talk an awful lot about a divided nation, but when even conservative media like Newsmax and Fox News come to me with surprise & sympathy about what my daughter was subject to by <a href="https://twitter.com/SouthwestAir?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SouthwestAir</a>, it makes me feel a little better about... well... human beings in general! <a href="https://t.co/jLPUhD89aM">https://t.co/jLPUhD89aM</a> — Mary MacCarthy (@MaryMacCarthy) <a href="https://twitter.com/MaryMacCarthy/status/1458112584377241606?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 9, 2021</a></blockquote> “As for my daughter, she was terribly frightened; she was already experiencing the trauma of her uncle’s death, and she is scared of police due to constant headlines about how police treat black people (she is black). She began to sob and was inconsolable,” her email said. Ms MacCarthy said the police assured her that nothing was wrong, and that they wanted to question her and her daughter. “They said they were here because my daughter and I were reported for suspicious behaviour, acting suspiciously before boarding and while boarding,” she said. “I took out my phone and immediately started recording. I told (the officer) who we were and that my daughter was crying because she had lost a family member.” According to a report from the Denver police, the pair were cleared of any suspicion. The report also included a note that officers were responding to a “possible Human Trafficking” reported by a Southwest flight attendant. However, Ms MacCarthy said she was unaware that she was suspected of human trafficking until two weeks after the incident. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> So remember my Tweet about being met by armed officers at <a href="https://twitter.com/DENAirport?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@DENAirport</a> getting off a <a href="https://twitter.com/SouthwestAir?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SouthwestAir</a> flight, traveling w/ my Black daughter? Today <a href="https://twitter.com/DenverPolice?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@DenverPolice</a> called me on suspicion of human trafficking. Have they never encountered a mixed-race family? How is this ok? <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BLM?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#BLM</a> — Mary MacCarthy (@MaryMacCarthy) <a href="https://twitter.com/MaryMacCarthy/status/1455390564031942659?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 2, 2021</a></blockquote> “I got a call from Denver Police human trafficking unit letting me know they were following up on the incident,” she told CNN. She has since accused the airline of racial profiling, has retained an attorney and wants the airline to be held “fully accountable”. “I gave the airline plenty of time to contact me and apologise - over two weeks later, I’ve yet to receive anything more than two brief automated responses. The time for apology is long past,” she said. In the email to Southwest’s media team, Ms MacCarthy asked for a written apology, an immediate reimbursement of their plane tickets, and “additional compensation to account for the trauma imposed on an innocent family, and especially on a grieving ten-year-old black girl.” <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> Had to cancel upcoming flights, my girl is not yet ready to travel after the <a href="https://twitter.com/SouthwestAir?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SouthwestAir</a> trauma. Thanks to <a href="https://twitter.com/Expedia?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Expedia</a> for your exceptional, kind customer service to accommodate us and provide full credit for price of tix! That's the definition of rockstar <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/customerservice?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#customerservice</a> — Mary MacCarthy (@MaryMacCarthy) <a href="https://twitter.com/MaryMacCarthy/status/1458178973888704512?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 9, 2021</a></blockquote> Dan Landson, a spokesperson for Southwest Airlines, told CNN in a statement that the company planned to reach out to Ms MacCarthy and conduct “a review of the situation internally”. “Our Employees undergo robust training on Human Trafficking. Above all, Southwest Airlines prides itself on providing a welcoming and inclusive environment for the millions of Customers who travel with us each year,” Mr Landson said. David Lane, Ms MacCarthy’s attorney, echoed her claims that it was a racially charged incident. “Had this been a white child, there would not have been a raised eyebrow,” he said. Image: @MaryMacCarthy (Twitter)

Travel Trouble

Outrage over racist sign in IGA

A Melbourne IGA store has gone viral after a photo was circulated online of a sign it had on display, instructing employees to ensure there were “minimum 2 staffs in front while we serve Africans.” The sign, taped to a monitor at checkout, reads, “If an African customer comes to the bottle shop presses [sic] the button for assistant immediately! Minimum 2 staffs in front while we serve Africans.” The sign had reportedly been on display at the Sunshine West store for three years, but has since been taken down. The manager of the store told the ABC he was sorry for his actions, claiming he put the sign there to remind staff to press the button for help if the store got busy, and shouldn’t have singled out African customers. He said, "I've done the wrong thing for the public, we should not do like this.” <div class="embed"><iframe class="embedly-embed" src="https://cdn.embedly.com/widgets/media.html?src=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.tiktok.com%2Fembed%2F7035246807781313793&display_name=tiktok&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.tiktok.com%2F%40aliya7_%2Fvideo%2F7035246807781313793&key=59e3ae3acaa649a5a98672932445e203&type=text%2Fhtml&schema=tiktok" width="340" height="700" scrolling="no" title="tiktok embed" frameborder="0" allow="autoplay; fullscreen" allowfullscreen="true"></iframe></div> A spokesperson for Metcash, which operates IGA supermarkets in Australia, said the sign was “completely unacceptable”. Their statement read, "When we saw the video, we promptly took corrective action with the store in question, including immediate removal of the sign. “Training for store staff is also underway while we assess the matter to determine what further action is appropriate." Chairman of the IGA National Retailer Council, Joseph Romeo, said this type of behaviour was “unacceptable and will not be tolerated in any IGA store across the country”. "As part of our ongoing commitment to supporting local communities across Australia, we are committed to ensuring ALL IGA stores and their employees continue to create a shopping environment where all are welcome and equal. "IGA retailers across the country are shocked by this event, please be assured that this is a one off case that will be dealt with appropriately." The image was originally shared on Snapchat, but went viral after Tiktok user @aliya7_ shared a video of her reacting to the sign, accompanied by the caption, “I mean no one goes there anyways”. Image: Tiktok

Legal

Waleed Aly defends cricketers refusal to support Black Lives Matter

Waleed Aly has jumped to the defence of South African cricketer Quinton de Kock, who refused to take a knee in support of the Black Lives Matter movement. The world-famous wicketkeeper made international headlines when he refused to kneel at the T20 World Cup during a show of support for the global anti-racism movement. His refusal sparked outrage around the world, as ABC Breakfast host Tony Armstrong says he "saw red" and blasted the cricketer's actions on air. In the days following, Quinton de Kock, who comes from a mixed race family, issued an apology, saying he felt like his rights were "taken away" as players were instructed just hours before the commencement of the game to take a knee. The Project host leapt to his defence, saying he understood the cricketer's reluctance to participate. "Especially when it came out that he was just told on the way to the ground and all of that sort of stuff," Aly told the program on Thursday night. "I think that there's a thing that sport has to think about here, which is, it's one thing for sport to take a stand... It's another thing when you compel every player to take the same stand, especially when you compel them a couple of hours before a game." Despite saying "if I was in his position, I'm taking the knee", Waleed said he thought it was unfair for Cricket South Africa to spring the action on unsuspecting players. "There was no conversation and suddenly he's meant to process this and take on something that the game or Cricket South Africa and a statement that they want to make as his own personal one," Aly continued. "It's a really weird situation for a player to be in." Guest host on The Project Tony Armstrong accepted the cricketer's apology and explanation, and admitted he may have made a mistake calling the player a racist. "I'm so glad that he's come out and said what he said. Because I think what he might not have realised in the moment was - just what it means to so many people," he said. You can check out the whole discussion here: <iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Kl9qOKx_JYY" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen=""></iframe> Image credits: The Project

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