Former South Sydney halfback Joe Williams and rugby league legend Larry Corowa have called upon Indigenous players not to stand during Advance Australia Fair at the NRL grand final.
Rugby League Week has reported that Williams and Corowa have called on Indigenous players to ‘send a powerful message to white Australia.’
The calls come following the Colin Kaepernick saga; the San Francisco 49ers quarterback has refused to stand during the American National Anthem in an attempt to illustrate the injustices suffered by African Americans and other minority groups, specifically relating to police brutality.
“I applaud Kaepernick for what he has done, and I know he has copped a lot of flak for it,” Williams told Rugby League Week.
“Imagine if a couple of guys did it on grand final day – what a powerful message it would send to white Australia.”
“It could bring all the racism that’s in the closet to the surface – the racism that we have to put up with every day. The way we are treated in shops, the way people look at us on the street and the way the government treats us.”
Williams has already been the subject of controversy concerning Advance Australia Fair. He refused to stand for the anthem when awarded the Australia Day Citizen of the Year by the city of Wagga Wagga in January following his work in mental health and suicide prevention.
Williams played 48 games in the NRL with Souths, Panthers, and Bulldogs and believed that such an action from stars like Johnathan Thurston would spark conversation about racial inequality in Australia.
Corowa, a former Balmain, and Australian representative winger called for Thurston specifically to lead the protest.
“I wish someone would have the courage to do it – it would be something to see. Imagine if someone with the respect of Johnathan Thurston did it – what a powerful statement that would make,” Corowa said.
Thurston has previously advocated the notion of performing traditional war dances before test matches, but such a protest is in stark contrast to the celebratory nature of such a ritual.
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