Gaps not closed the divisions shown by Taylor Walkers racist comment
In 2016, after his teammate Eddie Betts was racially abused by supporters in a late-season showdown, Taylor Walker called his Port Adelaide counterpart Travis Boak.
Walker, then the captain of the Crows, suggested to Boak that something needed to be done to stomp on the racial abuse of the beloved Betts, who had a banana thrown at him by a Port fan.
Taylor Walker wonât play again this season.Credit:Getty Images
Today, as Walker stands rightly condemned for his racist comment about North Adelaide and ex-St Kilda Indigenous player Robbie Young, it is hard to fathom how the same footballer who placed that call to Boak five years ago has inflicted such hurt to his Indigenous brethren.
The gap between that benign version of Taylor Walker and the one who made a racist comment about Young to teammate Matt Crouch is merely one of several divisions and chasms that have been laid bare by Walkerâs offensive remark.
The first and most significant rift, clearly, is between Walker and his clubâs five Indigenous players (four male and one female), who received a face-to-face apology from the embarrassed former skipper.
Walker had plenty at stake in making the apology. If those Indigenous teammates and the clubâs Indigenous staff felt they couldnât abide him at West Lakes, coach Matthew Nicks and the club hierarchy would have little choice but to jettison Walker, regardless of his contract for 2022.
Nicks, who spoke with such sincerity and moral force in a Friday media conference, did not guarantee that the former captain would be playing on.
The onus put on those five Crows underscores how Indigenous footballers are forced into uncomfortable situations that are not visited on the white majority. âTheyâre in a position now where they shouldnât have to be because of the colour of their skin,â said Betts in a timely interview with The Age.
Consider, too, that those Indigenous teammates would face a potential whitelash or backlash - be it racist or misguided club tribalism - if they were seen to play in a role in Walkerâs exit.
Crows coach Matthew Nicks.Credit:Getty Images
The club official who reported the incident has chosen to remain anonymous. The club hasnât specified his motive for being incognito, but if you visit social mediaâs sewers, youâll see thereâs a portion of fans (however unrepresentative) who blame him for tarnishing Walker.
Why would anyone pop their head up over that parapet?
That the official spoke up as he did is a measure of progress on racism. But that he doesnât wish to be identified is a measure of the limits of that progress.
The safe bet is that Walker will be retained, after public and private penance, though Nicks was wise to avoid any commitments.
A choked-up Nicks found the right words to address Walkerâs racist comment, which cannot be dismissed as âcasual racismâ - the term Crows board member and club great Mark Ricciuto deployed when commenting on his Adelaide radio program on Triple M.
âCasualâ implies a lower level offence, a few stray words, rather than something more overt, let alone a comment ventilated, as Walkerâs was, in the open air at quarter-time at a SANFL game.
âThis is a good lesson for everyone because thereâs a lot of casual racism in society and we laugh about it at times, but we probably donât realise how much damage it really does cause and we all need to learn from it,â said Ricciuto.
Ricciutoâs comment exposed, not quite a rift, but certainly a different outlook between him and Nicks.
Ricciuto spoke positively of Walkerâs remorse. Nicks, conversely, focused on the pain of the Walkerâs Indigenous teammates, plus his own ex-Swans team mates, Michael OâLoughlin and Adam Goodes.
And in the same week the Morrison government announced an upgraded version of the âClosing the Gapâ plan for Indigenous Australians, it became apparent that there was a considerable gap between the way the AFL playersâ own union view racism committed by a prominent footballer like Walker, and a member of the public.
The entire AFL universe, we media included - must consider whether it is right to apply one standard to the internet troll - âgarbageâ, âdisgraceful, cowardlyâ and âdisgustingâ - and another to those whom we know.
In their media statement attributed to chief executive Paul Marsh, the AFLPA said it was âextremely disappointed at the language used by...Taylor Walker.â
The statement added: âTexâs language was damaging and divisive, and there is no excuse for it. We are very clear on this - racism is abhorrent and there is no room for it in our game.â
Marsh said that Walker âhas expressed his sincere and genuine remorse and has owned and apologised for his actions.
Eddie Betts and Taylor Walker walk out on to the field for a clash with the Saints in 2016.Credit:Getty Images
âTex is not only committed to learning from this, but to also make a positive difference.â
The AFLPA president Patrick Dangerfield - admirably vigilant in his efforts to call out racism directed at players - tweeted a comment above Marshâs media statement: âThere is no room for racism, we must all do better to educate ourselves and those around usâ.
Compare the temperate, measured comments about Walkerâs appalling remark to those that the AFLPA leadership made when Betts was abused online (yet again) by a troll in February of 2019.
Marsh tweeted on February 23 of 2019: âMore disgraceful, cowardly, racist behaviour directed at one of our gameâs finest people. There is simply no excuse for this garbage. Our Indigenous players deserve much better.â
Dangerfield tweeted one word above Marshâs comment, pointing below: âdisgustingâ.
Marsh and Dangerfield were right to condemn the trolls in strong language. But they - and the entire AFL universe, we media included - must consider whether it is right to apply one standard to the internet troll - âgarbageâ, âdisgraceful, cowardlyâ and âdisgustingâ - and another to those whom we know.
Walkerâs ill-chosen words have had a far greater impact upon Indigenous players and people, on the Crows, and the game than anything put forth by a crude internet racist. Walker, as Nicks observed, has had significant education on racism.
The Players Association were encouraged by their Indigenous players to call out racism, especially online, at a pre-season Indigenous playersâ camp in 2019. Marsh and Dangerfield responded appropriately and took up the cudgels on behalf of their Indigenous members.
This is not a selective calling out of a calling out. The Age and much of the fourth estate have also failed - too often - to apply the same standards to our own backyard, as we do to those whom we report on.
It is noteworthy that Betts - in such demand, given his credibility and relationship with Walker - chose to speak, not with any of the legion of AFL accredited media, but with The Ageâs first Indigenous reporter hired in decades.
Of the many gaps that Walkerâs comment exposed, the most troubling remains this: The sheer paucity of non-players - coaches, chief executives, recruiters and, yes, footy media - who have lived experience of racism.
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Jake Niall is a Walkley award-winning sports journalist and chief AFL writer for The Age.
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