Scandal Former player suing AFL over racial abuse, sexual harassment

[40porpoise]

I’m not sure what his actual claim is? His personal statement seems quite vague and doesn’t mention any particulars other than being abused by an opposing player, which hardly seems like the AFL’s fault

 

[Gralin]

Sometimes when the system is fine for the other 43 guys in the same situation, the 1 is the outlier.

yes but being the outlier doesn't make what the others are doing right

you got 43 blokes picking on one because of his race/religion which is different from the other 43 you got an issue

now I don't know whats happened behind closed doors here or whats going to end up coming out but the whole point isn't whether he's the outlier it's whether the majority of people would think it was reasonable

if what happens comes out we can all decide for ourselves whether we think it was reasonable or not, to me though it looks a lot like what happened with Heritier which was a pretty good example of what happens if you don't go along with the boys

 

[Ron The Bear]

the question is more in relation to the ones that were not made public, how he was treated privately and how he was treated for having an issue with how he was treated privately from what I can gather

He's claiming he was "silenced". After being racially abused, he was put on the AFL's ambassador payroll. I'm reading this as him wanting to get up on his soapbox and the AFL saying "Whoa, we'll manage the PR interfacing with the public". And the timing on the heels of the Lyon fiasco, with mentions of "dark works" and "hush money", is telling.

Once again, happy to be shown to be wrong, but he's gone in with the whole kitchen sink. He's even claiming religious vilification, as well as "extremely systematic injustice across the AFL". This is quite possibly the most offended player ever.

 

[Taylor]

now I don't know whats happened behind closed doors here or whats going to end up coming out but the whole point isn't whether he's the outlier it's whether the majority of people would think it was reasonable

That was exactly my point though, people get offended by things all the time and the overwhelming majority of his direct peers didn't appear to have a problem.

It doesn't mean he was bullied, it doesn't mean he was victimised - some people just aren't made to stand up to the heat of high pressure environments.

If people put their self validation into things they have clung onto, such as racial identity, religious identity, sexual identity etc then having yourself questioned can feel like an attack on any of those fundamentals you erected for yourself. Now it's no longer calling you weak, it's calling you weak because of your race, religion or sexuality and that makes it unacceptable for them to say that - sidestepping that you are weak and it's a fair comment based on how you have carried yourself measured against your peers.

Weak is being used as an example of locker room feedback.

 

[blackcat]

so you think sexual harassment and assault help make life richer?

#specious.

I want the epidemiology and statistical regression of the proliferation and propensity of the harassment in modern society

let's see YOU be rigorous Gralin and not be party to #moralSCARES #sexSCARES, because to me it looks like you are an accomplice

Snake_Baker

 

[Gralin]

He's claiming he was "silenced". After being racially abused, he was put on the AFL's ambassador payroll. I'm reading this as him wanting to get up on his soapbox and the AFL saying "Whoa, we'll manage the PR interfacing with the public". And the timing on the heels of the Lyon fiasco, with mentions of "dark works" and "hush money", is telling.

Once again, happy to be shown to be wrong, but he's gone in with the whole kitchen sink. He's even claiming religious vilification, as well as "extremely systematic injustice across the AFL". This is quite possibly the most offended player ever.

I wonder if they are putting every little thing on the table in the expectation that this will be negotiated down before getting to court

That was exactly my point though, people get offended by things all the time and the overwhelming majority of his direct peers didn't appear to have a problem.

It doesn't mean he was bullied, it doesn't mean he was victimised - some people just aren't made to stand up to the heat of high pressure environments.

If people put their self validation into things they have clung onto, such as racial identity, religious identity, sexual identity etc then having yourself questioned can feel like an attack on any of those fundamentals you erected for yourself. Now it's no longer calling you weak, it's calling you weak because of your race, religion or sexuality and that makes it unacceptable for them to say that - sidestepping that you are weak and it's a fair comment based on how you have carried yourself measured against your peers.

Weak is being used as an example of locker room feedback.

you may be 100% correct, I don't think footballers are a great cross section of society as far as being the people to judge what is acceptable behavior though

we do know there were at least two camps during his time at the suns, the God Squad and the party boys, I'd imagine he didn't fit into either group, very much could have been the odd man out and perhaps would have done better at a different club but didn't get the chance

#specious.

I want the epidemiology and statistical regression of the proliferation and propensity of the harassment in modern society

let's see YOU be rigorous Gralin and not be party to #moralSCARES #sexSCARES, because to me it looks like you are an accomplice

Snake_Baker

I'd like you to post in plain english and answer questions you are asked instead of posting random hashtags but we don't always get what we want do we

 

[MarblesFolly]

Knights of Heriter to war !!!!

 

[ChesterTreasure]

I just watched the presser on the Age website - good to see Harry O acting as his spokesman (sorry - person)

 

[Mningasimisonda]

He was BOG average because of a total lack of a football brain. Looked lost almost every time I saw him play.

And that couldn't be a result of feeling on the outer and getting abused?

 

[Ron The Bear]

I wonder if they are putting every little thing on the table in the expectation that this will be negotiated down before getting to court

Not sure, but the newspapers are saying he's been in negotiation with the AFL for some time, and those negotiations have ended. So I'm guessing they've heard what he's got and aren't intimidated.

 

[blackcat]

Not sure, but the newspapers are saying he's been in negotiation with the AFL for some time, and those negotiations have ended. So I'm guessing they've heard what he's got and aren't intimidated.

#rentseeking not necessarily the pecuniary, financial rents, a strategic game of chicken, Brezhnev-JFK Havana brinksmanship innit #pleonasm
#UrgeOverkill evo

 

[Rob]

He's claiming he was "silenced". After being racially abused, he was put on the AFL's ambassador payroll. I'm reading this as him wanting to get up on his soapbox and the AFL saying "Whoa, we'll manage the PR interfacing with the public". And the timing on the heels of the Lyon fiasco, with mentions of "dark works" and "hush money", is telling.

Once again, happy to be shown to be wrong, but he's gone in with the whole kitchen sink. He's even claiming religious vilification, as well as "extremely systematic injustice across the AFL". This is quite possibly the most offended player ever.

What he's actually alleged is 'extreme racism'. That's a massive call and goes way, way beyond a few shower room calls by his teammates. The implication appears to be that he was on the receiving end of constant racist abuse pretty much every day of his career. Or at least every day he was at the club.

I look forward to him elaborating - my initial reaction is that the way he's described it is so far overboard that it's difficult to believe. If it is true then the Suns had problems way above what I thought. And I thought they were pretty badly run before.

 

[HairyO]

Definitely a tabloid but has strong girth. Well at least in the 90's when it had the classified section

Yet often mistaken for the peanuts comic?

What he's actually alleged is 'extreme racism'. That's a massive call and goes way, way beyond a few shower room calls by his teammates. The implication appears to be that he was on the receiving end of constant racist abuse pretty much every day of his career. Or at least every day he was at the club.

GCS has had quite the multi-cultural mix. Will be interesting to see if any others come forward in his defence, or with their own claims, or say they never saw anything beyond the occasional stupid thing being said (which you can certainly believe is possible).

 

[Ron The Bear]

What he's actually alleged is 'extreme racism'. That's a massive call and goes way, way beyond a few shower room calls by his teammates. The implication appears to be that he was on the receiving end of constant racist abuse pretty much every day of his career. Or at least every day he was at the club.

I look forward to him elaborating - my initial reaction is that the way he's described it is so far overboard that it's difficult to believe. If it is true then the Suns had problems way above what I thought. And I thought they were pretty badly run before.

There's nothing stopping ex-Suns players from speaking, and there are plenty of them from that period. Maybe the media can chase down a few for comment. Liam Patrick, who was delisted at the same time as Wilkinson, might be a good place to start.

 

[TheSunGod]

And that couldn't be a result of feeling on the outer and getting abused?

Simply put, No. He just wasn’t good enough. Ask any Suns supporter who saw him play. In fact he was actually gifted games he shouldn’t have been, as were a lot of young Suns back then.

 

[Feraligatr]

One of my workmates was saying he heard on SEN that some other former players have come forward saying they where also harassed. Did anyone else hear that?

 

[Mofra]

GCS has had quite the multi-cultural mix. Will be interesting to see if any others come forward in his defence, or with their own claims, or say they never saw anything beyond the occasional stupid thing being said (which you can certainly believe is possible).

Not to dismiss his claims, but Jarrad Harbrow left us for GCS and has played constantly since he arrived without a hint of wanting out. GCS have quite a few players from different backgrounds but this is teh first time rumours or accusations have been made.

Yes there was the Sherman incident with Wilkinson but the AFL acted on that, and also actively ejects any supporter from a venue that makes racist comments, I'm wondering how much more duty of care the AFL actually has when they in words and deeds do actively try to stamp racism out of the game.

 

[blackcat]

One of my workmates was saying he heard on SEN that some other former players have come forward saying they where also harassed. Did anyone else hear that?

Shine lawyers lawyer/spokesman on SEN1116 this morning on #Whately

 

[HairyO]

Not to dismiss his claims, but Jarrad Harbrow left us for GCS and has played constantly since he arrived without a hint of wanting out. GCS have quite a few players from different backgrounds but this is teh first time rumours or accusations have been made.

Yes there was the Sherman incident with Wilkinson but the AFL acted on that, and also actively ejects any supporter from a venue that makes racist comments, I'm wondering how much more duty of care the AFL actually has when they in words and deeds do actively try to stamp racism out of the game.

I would think a lot of people would say the AFL sometimes (or often) go too far in wanting to be the social arbiter of everything.

Maybe taking on that mantle means there is now an expectation that they will always go above and beyond. A product of their own doing.

Shine lawyers lawyer/spokesman on SEN1116 this morning on #Whately

Lawyers speaking in public about claiming to have people on board vs actual statements presented in court...

 

[Mofra]

Maybe taking on that mantle means there is now an expectation that they will always go above and beyond. A product of their own doing.

I think the AFL largely gets it right in these instances - but surely they are doing enough now?
I can't see what more the AFL should be doing in this space. Regulating intra-club locker room banter seems to be the only step available, and nobody could seriously consider that.

 

[Snake_Baker]

In 2018, victimhood pays.

 

[blackcat]

Not sure, but the newspapers are saying he's been in negotiation with the AFL for some time, and those negotiations have ended. So I'm guessing they've heard what he's got and aren't intimidated.

rent-seeking brinksmanship of non financial kind

 

[Brad Goodman]

This boy has a gigantic chip on his shoulder

 

[Ron The Bear]

He's close to half my age. Only a boy.

 

[ThirtyFive]

Definitely a tabloid but has strong girth. Well at least in the 90's when it had the classified section