Nic Naitanui urges public to ‘grow together’ after mother paints son’s skin for Book Week parade

[hawkgal02]

Isn't the black dreadlocked hair something that identifies him as belonging to a race, therefore racist?

Not mention the cultural appropriation. Although Naitanui is Fijian descent and dreadlocks are rastafarian, so maybe he is the real culturally insensitive person in all this.

If he is offended by the hair than yes. As far as I'm aware he's more concerned about the blackface

 

[coerced]

Go read up on a few other incidents of blackface in this country in recent times and you'll see who is offended.

Liz Cambage, for one, didn't take too kindly to seeing her Opels teammates don blackface.

Again, I don't see the issue. Her teammate dressed up like Kanye West, was West offended?

Blackface was used to demean and belittle black people, which is wrong, yet these instances exalt them. Kanye West is a superstar rapper and Naitanui is the best ruckman in the game - people are dressing up as them because they admire them and want to be them. If people are appropriating their skin colour as something to honour them, isn't this good?

The moralising prigs instead make black skin tone something that is taboo if not worn by someone born into it.

 

[pantskyle]

If I wanna dress up as Homer from the Simpsons, I paint myself yellow and it's fine. If I want to be Carl from the Simpsons it becomes an issue. ¯\_(シ)_/¯

Not Lenny?

 

[Jobe Watson]

She is another that is easily outraged. And chose social media for her outrage, rather than actually speaking with her teammates.

How is privately speaking to her teammate going to raise awareness of the issue? She obviously wanted to take a stand and make a public example of why this sort of behaviour shouldn't be tolerated.

Not to mention her teammate already put the picture into the public domain by uploading it to Instagram. Simply by doing that she was opening herself up to public feedback.

 

[Quivorir]

Not Lenny?

I don't like Lenny because he has brown hair.

 

[bugalugs213]

What annoys me is people continue to do things like this even after they get told its offensive.

 

[dangerwood]

Nic Nats response was all class. It's a way forward not a way back and it appeases all those concerned.

Nic Nats response did a lot of good.

Incredibly impressed by his response.

 

[Farm Boy]

has anyone else noticed that all these so called racist football fans seem to be women?

Damn white female privilege at it again.

 

[pantskyle]

I don't like Lenny because he has brown hair.

TRIGGERED!!!!

 

[FRUMPY]

The number usually gives it away

That's if you see them from the back, I usually talk to people face to face. Would get tired of explaining im majak daw and not Dal Santo

 

[MilhouseVsEvil]

Its almost as if theres a saying for this....

imitation is the highest form of flattery?

Al Jolson said the exact same thing...

 

[kaiserchief13]

Is it racist for eyes to see skin colour these days?

 

[YippeeYiYeo]

Nonsense.

If I have a mate over watching football on TV & he breaks out into a racist rant about a player, I'm offended that he'd believe I find that acceptable.

Same with this mother. If my kids were in her kids class I'd be offended she was exposing my kid to such insensitivity. After reading her facebook post I'd probably be more than just offended. I'd be angry.

Calm tf down seriously.

 

[FRUMPY]

What annoys me is people continue to do things like this even after they get told its offensive.

Im offended by hawthorn winning flag year after year. So im tipping now there will be no more premierships now the world knows im offended?

 

[Bostonian]

Isn't the black dreadlocked hair something that identifies him as belonging to a race, therefore racist?

Not mention the cultural appropriation. Although Naitanui is Fijian descent and dreadlocks are rastafarian, so maybe he is the real culturally insensitive person in all this.

The cultural appropriation of dreadlocks debate has been well and truly debunked and put to rest. All cultures had people with dreadlocks at some stage in history.

 

[Armchair Critic]

Calm tf down seriously.

He sounds like a very angry man. Maybe we should call child protection

 

[Jobe Watson]

Again, I don't see the issue. Her teammate dressed up like Kanye West, was West offended?

Blackface was used to demean and belittle black people, which is wrong, yet these instances exalt them. Kanye West is a superstar rapper and Naitanui is the best ruckman in the game - people are dressing up as them because they admire them and want to be them. If people are appropriating their skin colour as something to honour them, isn't this good?

The moralising prigs instead make black skin tone something that is taboo if not worn by someone born into it.

So you think something that was seen as racist 100 years ago should be ok now?

No one is saying that by donning blackface you are making fun of the person you are dressing up as. But that's what blackface did used to represent. And it still carries that legacy and connotation. And for that reason, it's best to steer clear of it. A lot of black people do still find it offensive, and white people don't get to tell them to not be offended.

Honestly, any time I see a white person don blackface, I just think of them as an ignorant troglodyte who isn't educated enough to know what they're doing wrong. Like those bogan country footballers who all donned Aboriginal-themed blackface costumes and couldn't understand why there was such a public backlash.

 

[Bostonian]

What annoys me is people continue to do things like this even after they get told its offensive.

What if the people telling them it's offensive get offended by anything and everything? Why is their offense to be taken as the be all and end all opinion?

Are you going to live your life by their views and not you're own?

 

[my name was taken]

Nic Nats response was all class. It's a way forward not a way back and it appeases all those concerned.

Nic Nats response did a lot of good.

Incredibly impressed by his response.

In other words, he sat on the fence to not piss off either side.


I thought it could have a been an opportunity to kill off a bit of racism, it's using a seemingly racist thing in the least racist way. Taking the power away from it. I'm not saying we should forget the past but sometimes, somethings have to give for progression.

 

[YippeeYiYeo]

In all honesty, if I were the MVP in the NBA, and a black kid painted his face and arms white and wore my number on his back id be honored. NicNat feels the same about this kid but the media and SJW's want him to be offended.

Our world is ****ed. No chance of moving forward if you constantly drag up the past.

 

[barmy44]

Why is black hair ok but not black skin?

slight historical differences between the treatment of the two, for a kick off...

 

[yeahmate]

What annoys me is people continue to do things like this even after they get told its offensive.

Its offensive in some cultures for women to show their faces in public. So all women in Australia should cover their faces in public lest they offend.

 

[Bostonian]

So you think something that was seen as racist 100 years ago should be ok now?

No one is saying that by donning blackface you are making fun of the person you are dressing up as. But that's what blackface did used to represent. And it still carries that legacy and connotation. And for that reason, it's best to steer clear of it. A lot of black people do still find it offensive, and white people don't get to tell them to not be offended.

Honestly, any time I see a white person don blackface, I just think of them as an ignorant troglodyte who isn't educated enough to know what they're doing wrong. Like those bogan country footballers who all donned Aboriginal-themed blackface costumes and couldn't understand why there was such a public backlash.

Wog used to represent something negative 40 years ago. Then it started morphing into meaning something more positive and light hearted.

These days the only time I hear that word is when it's being used in a jocular way between friends.

See what can happen when you don't link everything to the past and let it evolve into something else?

You are just as big a part of the problem as anyone. You creative the negativity when often there is none present. You are the one keeping something that happened 100 years ago alive by reinforcing it as a divisive thing not allowing it to became something different.

 

[Ron The Bear]

In other words, he sat on the fence to not piss off either side.

I saw it as not feigning offence on behalf of others.

 

[SloppyJoe]

Always good to see the bien pensants replace their race hatred with class hatred.

The above would have been racists when it was acceptable to do so.

I fail to see how class has anything to do with what I said.

And you are so far off the mark with your second comment that I won't dignify it with a substantive response