The Final Quarter / The Australian Dream (AG documentaries) and related discussion

[Meg]

‘Hurt, anger, shame and sometimes tears.’

‘After emotional reactions at previews for the AFL community, the new documentary on the controversy that surrounded Adam Goodes at the end of his celebrated playing career is about to ignite a debate about racism in this country when it starts screening publicly next month.’

http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/movies/this-is-what-racism-looks-like-filmmaker-opens-up-about-adam-goodes-doco-20190515-p51nmi.html?btis

[AnnieH]

It's going to be screened on TV and then sent to the schools to use as a learning tool.
Good one.
Expect the racists to deny it being racist... again.

[Meg]

It's going to be screened on TV and then sent to the schools to use as a learning tool.
Good one.
Expect the racists to deny it being racist... again.

The denials have already started. The usual disgraceful comments were BTL of an article about the film in The Australian.

[Meg]

‘Port Adelaide's Aboriginal programs director Paul Vandenbergh says the film (about Adam Goodes) is "quite confronting".

"People like Shauny Burgoyne and Eddie Betts stood up afterwards and spoke on behalf of the group with tears in their eyes," Vandenbergh said on Tuesday.

"Talking about not so much the industry not standing up, but we as Aboriginal people didn't stand up for Adam at the time.

"We sort of stayed silent, which was what we were probably really sad about when we watched the doco."’

Goodes documentary a 'line in the sand', says Vandenbergh - AFL.com.au

[Mel_C]

‘Port Adelaide's Aboriginal programs director Paul Vandenbergh says the film (about Adam Goodes) is "quite confronting".

"People like Shauny Burgoyne and Eddie Betts stood up afterwards and spoke on behalf of the group with tears in their eyes," Vandenbergh said on Tuesday.

"Talking about not so much the industry not standing up, but we as Aboriginal people didn't stand up for Adam at the time.

"We sort of stayed silent, which was what we were probably really sad about when we watched the doco."’

Goodes documentary a 'line in the sand', says Vandenbergh - AFL.com.au

I'm glad Burgoyne has acknowledged that. At the time I was disappointed that he stayed silent considering his supporters were the main instigators of the booing.

[Legs Akimbo]

There is so much crap. So much. We are not talking about something that happened in the 1950s. This all panned out just a few short years ago. At the time it was clear it was racist and action was needed. Everyone knew. I thought at the time "why isn't the AFL doing something." How Gil can say he wished he acted a week earlier beggars belief. Passive weak and embarrassingly ineffectual leadership. A poostain that no amount of revisionist BS will wipe away. A smear on some big names the stench of which no amount of public scrubbing will remove.

[stevoswan]

‘Port Adelaide's Aboriginal programs director Paul Vandenbergh says the film (about Adam Goodes) is "quite confronting".

"People like Shauny Burgoyne and Eddie Betts stood up afterwards and spoke on behalf of the group with tears in their eyes," Vandenbergh said on Tuesday.

"Talking about not so much the industry not standing up, but we as Aboriginal people didn't stand up for Adam at the time.

"We sort of stayed silent, which was what we were probably really sad about when we watched the doco."’

Goodes documentary a 'line in the sand', says Vandenbergh - AFL.com.au

In Burgoyne's case , he basically put his fans before his people, as Hawks fans were among the worst booers of Goodes. Rioli was silent on it as well. They have to live with themselves on that decision.

Other indigenous players were probably just wary of poking the bear (AFL) and upsetting their clubs relationship with the league, after seeing the way the league treated the Swans post the Tippett/Franklin recruitments. Or they were instructed by their clubs to not 'poke the bear'. Either way, they too have to live with their actions....

I think all this highlights the power of the AFL and as such, highlights the total lack of appropriateness of their initial response and follow up actions once they finally realised that they, as the moral arbiters they had promoted themselves to be, needed to actually step up and set a more appropriate example.....instead of letting the previously mentioned animosity toward the Swans cloud their 'judgement' on the Goodes issue. The issue became too big to ignore. Alas, it was all too late and the damage was done.

As for Maguire coming out on the subject this week and the racists jumping on social media to defend themselves ahead of the doco.....well, that's just guilt rearing it's head and self preservation kicking in. Typical of selfish (and stupid) narcissists....they expose themselves all the time. I'm just going to ignore all of them this time round......or at least try to.

[Velour&Ruffles]

In Burgoyne's case , he basically put his fans before his people, as Hawks fans were among the worst booers of Goodes. Rioli was silent on it as well. They have to live with themselves on that decision.

Other indigenous players were probably just wary of poking the bear (AFL) and upsetting their clubs relationship with the league, after seeing the way the league treated the Swans post the Tippett/Franklin recruitments. Or they were instructed by their clubs to not 'poke the bear'. Either way, they too have to live with their actions....

I think all this highlights the power of the AFL and as such, highlights the total lack of appropriateness of their initial response and follow up actions once they finally realised that they, as the moral arbiters they had promoted themselves to be, needed to actually step up and set a more appropriate example.....instead of letting the previously mentioned animosity toward the Swans cloud their 'judgement' on the Goodes issue. The issue became too big to ignore. Alas, it was all too late and the damage was done.

As for Maguire coming out on the subject this week and the racists jumping on social media to defend themselves ahead of the doco.....well, that's just guilt rearing it's head and self preservation kicking in. Typical of selfish (and stupid) narcissists....they expose themselves all the time. I'm just going to ignore all of them this time round......or at least try to.

I thought that on the whole the level of support from other indigenous players at the time was very poor. That said, one can understand why they wouldn't want to enter the fray and find themselves exposed to the same garbage.

The player who really did put himself out there in support was Bob Murphy, then captain of the Dogs. He always seemed like a very decent guy but he showed he was actually a class act.

[KSAS]

I heard Peter Gordon (Bulldogs CEO) attempting to defend Eddie on Whateley's SEN show this morning when the Goodes doco was raised. Peter reckons Eddie shouldn't be judged too harshly because he's only made a few commentary blunders if you take into consideration his extensive time in the Media. WTF!!!! That's like saying someone who has been done for drink driving few times shouldn't be judged too harshly as you should taken into account their 30 years holding a driver's license!!!!

I also hope the doco captures the time I heard Dermie say on radio after the Goodes War dance, describing it as violent because it was about killing people!!!!

[chalbilto]

I heard Peter Gordon (Bulldogs CEO) attempting to defend Eddie on Whateley's SEN show this morning when the Goodes doco was raised. Peter reckons Eddie shouldn't be judged too harshly because he's only made a few commentary blunders if you take into consideration his extensive time in the Media. WTF!!!! That's like saying someone who has been done for drink driving few times shouldn't be judged too harshly as you should taken into account their 30 years holding a driver's license!!!!

I also hope the doco captures the time I heard Dermie say on radio after the Goodes War dance, describing it as violent because it was about killing people!!!!

Could not agree more. Well said.

[KTigers]

This is a complicated issue. Not everyone feels comfortable “speaking up” on behalf of others.
I’m not sure they should be castigated for it just because they have the same skin colour as the
person being boo-ed.
There is this other thing. A lot of people don’t like to believe that what they see is evidence of
a core ugliness in other people. It makes them feel comfortable to believe that most
people are essentially good and don’t have these dark thoughts. Others are at the other end of the
spectrum, and think we’re all only just a few shaky steps away from Cormac McCarthy’s “The Road”.
It’s the nature of humans, they don’t all look at things the same way.
And so, in relation to the boo-ing of Goodsey, there is a sizeable portion of the population that
just don’t want to believe that they are sitting in a stadium with 50,000 other people that they
feel some commonality with, ie they all like footy, and that the 10,000 people boo-ing an indigenous player
are racists. They just can’t handle that thought, so they don’t believe it.
It’s possible that some of the higher ups in the AFL, and in the media, and in the clubs are in this camp.
You think, well how can they not see what I see? They are smart people, they’ve done well for
themselves being high up in their profession etc. How is it possible they not see the boo-ing for what
it is? I think some of them just don’t want to believe it. It unsettles them too much. It becomes
about them.
But what I think all people should see now, whether it unsettles them or not, is that the greatest
indigenous player in the history of the game had to retire prematurely because of how he was
treated. And this happened in 2015, not 1915 or 1815.

[AnnieH]

‘Port Adelaide's Aboriginal programs director Paul Vandenbergh says the film (about Adam Goodes) is "quite confronting".

"People like Shauny Burgoyne and Eddie Betts stood up afterwards and spoke on behalf of the group with tears in their eyes," Vandenbergh said on Tuesday.

"Talking about not so much the industry not standing up, but we as Aboriginal people didn't stand up for Adam at the time.

"We sort of stayed silent, which was what we were probably really sad about when we watched the doco."’

Goodes documentary a 'line in the sand', says Vandenbergh - AFL.com.au

Exactly.
The only brothers that stood with Adam were MickyO and Jetts. The silence from the rest was disgraceful.
Can't wait for it to show to the public. I'm going to the premier. I'll take tissues.

[rojo]

One element that may have contributed to the lack of support from other indigenous players is that Adam's background was that he was from a mixed parented family and had grown up feeling he didnt belong to either community. I heard him say when being interviewed after becoming Australian of the Year that in the school playground he was called an abbbo by the whites and a banana by the indigenous kids, black on the outside but white in the middle. The indigenous players who come from strong indigenous families such as the Jettas and the Riolis probably did not understand

[rojo]

(oops touched the wrong bar!),..... did not understand where Adam was coming from, why he was standing up so passionately. It's just a thought!

[barry]

This is a complicated issue. Not everyone feels comfortable “speaking up” on behalf of others.
I’m not sure they should be castigated for it just because they have the same skin colour as the
person being boo-ed.
There is this other thing. A lot of people don’t like to believe that what they see is evidence of
a core ugliness in other people. It makes them feel comfortable to believe that most
people are essentially good and don’t have these dark thoughts. Others are at the other end of the
spectrum, and think we’re all only just a few shaky steps away from Cormac McCarthy’s “The Road”.
It’s the nature of humans, they don’t all look at things the same way.
And so, in relation to the boo-ing of Goodsey, there is a sizeable portion of the population that
just don’t want to believe that they are sitting in a stadium with 50,000 other people that they
feel some commonality with, ie they all like footy, and that the 10,000 people boo-ing an indigenous player
are racists. They just can’t handle that thought, so they don’t believe it.
It’s possible that some of the higher ups in the AFL, and in the media, and in the clubs are in this camp.
You think, well how can they not see what I see? They are smart people, they’ve done well for
themselves being high up in their profession etc. How is it possible they not see the boo-ing for what
it is? I think some of them just don’t want to believe it. It unsettles them too much. It becomes
about them.
But what I think all people should see now, whether it unsettles them or not, is that the greatest
indigenous player in the history of the game had to retire prematurely because of how he was
treated. And this happened in 2015, not 1915 or 1815.

I think you could throw blanket over the types of people who try to justify the booing on social media and label them quite accurately as racists.

I dont understand the rest. I am one of those people who believe most people are fundamentally good at heart.