The issue of fans booing Adam Goodes reached new heights last week, as the 365-game veteran was roundly booed by large sections of Domain Stadium during the West Coast versus Sydney match on Sunday evening.
Lewis Jetta, a teammate and friend of Goodes, reacted to the treatment afforded to Goodes by paying homage to his infamous “war dance” celebration in Round 9 against Carlton, an incident which caused uproar and controversy in the football world.
It also showed the football world why the consistent booing of Goodes should cease immediately, and why the people who partake in the chorus of boos are as bad as the people that racially vilify him.
Jetta’s celebration, after kicking a goal early in the final term, gave a small insight into the feelings of Goodes, the Sydney Swans and other Aboriginal footballers at the abuse directed at Goodes for much of this season.
It hurts them. Personally. Therefore it should stop.
Goodes may have flirted with controversy for the latter part of his career. Ever since then-Lions coach Leigh Matthews labelled him a “protected species” at the Tribunal, after he was cleared of several controversial charges at the Match Review Panel between 2006-08, public opinion of him has rapidly declined.
Indeed, the author of this article is not a particularly big fan of Goodes the footballer. He can often be distasteful, as time and time again umpires pay free kicks that may have been ‘simulated’ (to put it mildly) by the 34 year-old. But this author will never boo Goodes and neither should you.
Like him or not, Goodes has been subjected to abuse that focuses on his racial heritage and culture. Like him or not, he has been vilified in a racial manner both from fans, and in the media.
The incident against Collingwood last year, in which Goodes directed security guards to a young girl who he heard yelling racist abuse, was clearly the tip of the iceberg. No one should be naive enough to think that it was a one-off. 15 years of it had clearly worn him thin.
The fact that Goodes called it out was controversial. It made people dislike him even more as a person. This, coupled with a natural dislike of the ‘whinger’ in Australian culture (Goodes had previously opened up about being bullied at school), shifted public opinion against the Swan. Where he had previously been labelled a great, he was now labelled with other tags.
The Carlton incident only exacerbated public opinion on him. He was a villian. A whinger who believed everyone was against him. To be honest, he’d be right. Most of the football community it seems, are.
But Goodes is proud of who he is. He made it against the odds, beat the bullies, banished his demons and went on to become one of the greats of our game. That cannot be disputed.
But for those who just don’t like him – and I could certainly find you thousands of comments online that say just that – just because he does a celebration that you, as a football fan of an opposing team, find slightly distasteful, does not give you the right to subject him to loud choruses of boos for his every possession, all 121 of them.
As Jonathan Brown said, Goodes does not deserve to be “subjected to a season-long punishment”, for an act that would have been mildly controversial from any other player, at best.
No, this article does not accuse you, the football fan, of being racist. It merely explains that by booing Goodes, you allow the real racists, the ones who preach what that young girl said last year, every week. By booing Goodes, you allow a player who is controversial mainly because of the colour of his skin and his pride in it, to be vilified.
You don’t just hurt Adam Goodes, you hurt every Aboriginal footballer who plays, or who has played our indigenous game.
You indirectly shame Aboriginal pride. Pride in heritage, in culture, and in their success.
More importantly, you allow a culture, a bigoted, and sometimes outright racist, culture to flourish in one of the most important and respected institutions in Australia. You give cover to the people who yell outrageous things at Aboriginal players, or players of any other non-Anglo/Christian background.
These people are hidden when you boo Adam Goodes.
In short, you, the football fan that boos Adam Goodes, are a racial apologist. You may not like it, nor may you be a racist person, but you are, 100 per cent, absolutely, a racial apologist.
The same goes for those that defend the booing. Some, hidden behind a computer screen, tucked away from the court of public opinion, others, in an Anglo-dominated street, allow this culture, one with racist undertones, to prevail. You too, are a racial apologist.
Mark Robinson was absolutely correct when he said that Gillion McLachlan should have labelled the booing on Sunday 26th July as racist. Even if most of it wasn’t, it became a shield for those out there that do harbour such views. As CEO, it is McLachlan’s job to call out racial apologists in our game. Not to do so was an opportunity lost.
Whether you like or hate Adam Goodes the person, or the footballer, one thing is for certain: Adam Goodes is a champion. A champion of both the game, and his peoples’ cause. This should be celebrated. 365 games and 464 goals, two Brownlows and two premierships don’t get handed out. He earned them.
So the next time you, the football fan, thinks about partaking in the shameful jeering and booing levelled at Adam Goodes, stop and think. Think about the culture you are creating and allowing to flourish.
Footy is a sport of acceptance. Of all classes, backgrounds, politics, heritage, race, religions, sexual orientation. Of equality. Don’t prevent this proud heritage from continuing. Don’t be a racial apologist.
Most importantly, stop booing Adam Goodes.
Lisa Owen
Guest
For those of you saying it's not racism, google "racial discomfort". We don't wanna think we're racist, but by letting this stuff slide, hating on Goodes for standing up against racism (how dare he!), we're perpetuating it. I don't follow AFL at all, and have zero opinion on Goodes as a footy player but this whole saga is so hard to discuss with 99% of people who have minimal understanding of race issues in australia or the world.
Rebecca
Guest
The way he pathetically bullied a young girl? He pointed out a member of the shallow end of the gene pool who called him an ape. She was 13 years old, that is old enough not to be abusive. SHE was in the wrong and the consequence was appropriate. the way he disrespectfully called Australia day Invasion day - it WAS Invasion Day to Aboriginal people. Should they be saying 'Thank you ever so much for the disease, massacres and genocide'? Hope you get as upset at the haka He is not accepting the racial abuse, maybe people should be bigots.
Rebecca
Guest
How do you figure he is 'predominantly Caucasian'? One parent Indigenous, one non-Indigenous, unless you are suggesting being male or white is dominant in a person's biological makeup for some reason. Let's explore the racial motivation behind the term 'ape'. European superiority over African races goes back to the 1400's and further based on concept of the Great Chain of Being which was a theological hierarchical explanation for all of existence that put God on top and continued down to humans, animals, plants etc. Non-white races were considered to sit somewhere between white people and animals - sub-human. This concept was then used to justify all sorts of horrific practices including slavery all the way through to Nazi experimentation on the Jews. And Australian Aboriginals were most definitely tarred by this concept. When European explorers and settlers encountered Aboriginal people from the 1600s-1800s, they often said that Aboriginal people were not humans but were actually animals - like apes or monkeys. Such ideas justified not only European superiority, but also massacres, other forms of abuse and stealing the land. Social Darwinism used Darwin's theory of evolution to then argue that Aboriginal people were the missing link, and were actually closer to apes than humans. The fact that they were considered the 'link' in evolution gave rise to the idea they were a dying race. This was the concept that led to governmental policy to 'smooth the dying pillow', and 'assist' what was left of the Aboriginal population after the disease and massacres to simply die out. To summarize - calling Goodes an ape has racial motivation, and not about Caucasians. Any person of Aboriginal descent, who identifies as Aboriginal and is recognised within their community as such IS Aboriginal. Talking about full or half Aboriginals is an outdated and racist perspective
shirtfront
Guest
Nathan Buckley was booed by every opposition team and worse they called FIGJAM every time he went near the ball. Tony Modra had toilet rolls thrown by the crowd and had names of a homosexual nature called to him. Akermanis, Carey, and all players that went to other clubs were booed along with umpires and so on. I hope when/if Goodes does play again people will refrain from booing him, as I didn't like the look of hatred on the faces of Goodes and Jetta when they performed their spear throwing war dance. I found it to be very confrontational and racist, certainly a lot worse than being booed.
Bulstrode Whitelocke
Guest
74 Indigenous players in the AFL and only one gets booed. There is no racism from the crowd here. The racism is in Goodes.
Peter T
Guest
Spot on, it is over, its gone too far. Black players have bought a special gift to the game, a special something and we are all more better off for their contributions, imagine the game without people (not players, people) like Long, Winmar, The Krakouer Bros, Byron Picket, Mcleod, Leon, Motlop, Wirapunda, Chris Lewis and many more. It is not clever, it is not funny, its not cool now its just racist stupid and hurtful so stop.
Brian Williams
Guest
People dont like Adam Goodes and if that makes me a racists in your eyes ,tell someone who cares. We boo lots of players because we dont like them Goodes is NO different.
3blindmice
Guest
Well said Finn. 21st century sport - especially our beloved great Australian game - has no place for racism or racist fans booing one of its great modern players simply because he's been prepared to put his arse on the line in regard to ignorant racist behaviour. Most of us go to games to see good hard clean footy, not to hear dullwitted comments and inane booing from the peanut gallery. We heckle bad decisions, opposition players, players going too hard, umps making horrible decisions, but we quickly move on to the spectacle and admiration of the skills, fitness and guts of all those involved - even those we don't particularly like for some reason. Footy arouses passions - mostly good humoured - which add to the spectacle, the atmosphere, and the entertainment. Constant booing does the opposite - it detracts from the game in every way. It's nasty, witless, irrelevant and reflects on those involved. If you want to vent your racism stay at home. Better still, do us all a favour and find a new game to follow.
3blindmice
Guest
Changed your tack Todd? Not much wrong with your second comment but your first misses the point completely. 21st century sport - especially the great Australian game - has no place for racism or racist fans booing one of its great modern players for no other reason than the fact that he's been prepared to put his arse on the line in regard to racist and ignorant behaviour. Most of us go to games to watch good hard, clean footy not to hear dullwitted comments and booing from the peanut gallery. We heckle bad decisions, opposition players going too hard, umps making horrible decisions, but we quickly move on to the game, the spectacle, and admiration of the skills, fitness and guts of all those involved - even those we don't particularly like. The game arouses mostly good humoured passions which gives atmosphere and adds to the entertainment. Moronic booing does the opposite. It detracts from the spectacle. It's nasty, witless and has no place in our game.
Lost.
Guest
I'm trying to catch up on all this from overseas but I don't understand your argument. Why is it not racist for a a fan to boo Paul Puopolo, after all, it makes you an apologist for the people who hate his heritage. Who decides what a persons intention is when they boo, the person booing or the person being boo'd. At the moment it seems that it's Goodes who decides when people boo him but that is not a luxury afforded anyone else that I'm aware of. Probably the stupidist thing I have heard in this whole argument is you taking an issue that is very clearly not black and white but grey and saying anything at all could be 100%. I mean get why you said it, you are being provocative, or trying to. It just makes you sound stupid, can I say that or am I 100% being an apologist for people who don't like you because of your skin/heritage/sexual orientation/politics etc etc
Coops
Guest
So in your view Nazi Germany and the Apartheid regimes were wrong to treat people of mixed race as if they were pure Jew or Indigenous African, and what would have saved these people persecution was to embrace their Aryan Ancestry and convince them that they too had Aryan blood?? What a load of BS. Your right on one point and that is that race shouldn't matter, but it does, and that is why all of the people supporting the ongoing and incessant booing of Goodes need to have a good hard look at themselves just like the author of this article points out. Goodes is being singled out in a way no other player has ever been singled out before, the situation is now out of control and the Racists are going to ride it for all its worth, and that is why those booing are Racial Apologists.
andyl12
Guest
Carey was getting booed long before the affair with Kelly Stevens. Clearly you were living in la-la land from about 1994-2001 or you would've known this.
Nev57
Guest
I wasnt going to reply to any of these forums but i need to get it off my chest i was at the game on sunday being a west coast supporter and a few facts need to be straightened out . It wasnt large sections of the crowd at all it was a few minority groups , secondly Lewis Jetta didnt do a war dance he incited the crowd by doing the "up yours " I didnt boo Goodes at all and i dont agree with the continual booing of him but i dislike the guy because of the way he whinges and carries on on the field and the way he pathetically bullied a young girl from from the game against Collingwood and the way he disrespectfully called Australia day Invasion day and incited a so called war dance at the Carlton fans this guy is using the AFL arena to get across his political views and he needs to pull his head in, from what i read on these forums the majority have had enough him, he has brought this on himself and to the surface what the average person in the street really thinks
Zach
Guest
Oh Yes well said Todd
Jack Smith
Roar Guru
http://www.news.com.au/sport/afl/adam-goodes-has-won-only-11-free-kicks-this-season-is-the-perception-really-a-reality/story-fndv8ujy-1227460722688 @Greg Pointing a gun at someone hasn't ever been in someone's culture...
Jack Smith
Roar Guru
Carey got booed after an affair with another player's wife. Matthews barely got booed. Neither have gotten booed for the length at which Goodes has, in terms of actual 'boo' or game after game. Which is what leads me to believe there is a racist minority.
Jameswm
Guest
Give me a break.
Jameswm
Guest
People's don't like being told to look in the mirror and try to hide in the masses when forced to do so.
alicesprings
Guest
Absoultely. I teach at a school that has 100% Indigenous students. Would love it if some of these pin heads on here would come up and explain their views on this issue to my class. They wouldn't have the balls of course. Im showing them 'the roar' tomorrow in class and getting them to right down their reflections. Racism is nothing new for these kids who cop some chronic stuff up here. We spend a good portion of our time helping kids to deal with discrimination and its effects. Anyway the common thing that comes up regarding Goodes up here is the wild double standard. No one would have any problem if other plays that do what supposably Goodes does also got the same treatment. Of course there is a racist element to this and for some weird reason it is being tolerated and even defended. It goes without saying Goodes, Jetta or any Indig player are dead set Gods up here.
Greg
Guest
Jack, its Goodes' behaviour. He's a sniper, slider and his actions incite the crowds. As for Jetta, giving the 'up yours' after his display would have warranted boos from me and rightly from those present. What would have happened if someone had imitated pointing a gun at either of them? I'll bet the PC police would have ejected them. This situation has two sides and Goode's is up to form. He is a divisive individual whose actions have no place in modern football.