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Right: Police remove cricket spectators who were alleged to have subjected players to racist taunts.
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Background information
The information and opinions below have primarily been drawn from the Wikipedia entry 'Racism in sport in Australia'. The full entry can be accessed at
Some material has also been taken from the comment published in Crikey titled 'Racism is woven into the very DNA of Australian cricket' and written by Charlie Lewis. The full analysis and comment can be accessed at
Racism in sport in Australia
Racism in sport in Australia has a long history as stated by the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC). In 2006, the AHRC published the report What's the score? A survey of cultural diversity and racism in Australian sport', which stated that: 'Racism in sport is a complex problem. It can include racism, discrimination, harassment or vilification by players directed at other players; by spectators directed at players; or racist behaviour among rival spectator groups which spill over into disruptions and violence in the stands. It also includes the actions of sporting officials and coaches, as well as media commentators.'
Sports historian Colin Tatz traces racism in Australia sport back to the 1800s. Since the 1990s there have been numerous racial vilification cases reported in the Australian media. This is due to the increase in Indigenous athletes participating in Australian Football League (AFL)[3] and National Rugby League (NRL) and national sports organisations introducing rules to facilitate racial vilification cases.
In 1995, the Australian Football League introduced Rule 30: A Rule to Combat Racial and Religious Vilification on June 30, 1995, as a result of the shortcomings in the manner in which Michael Long's racial vilification case against Damian Monkhorst was resolved. The Rule stated that: 'no player ... shall act towards or speak to any other person in a manner, or engage in any other conduct which threatens, disparages, vilifies or insults another person ... on the basis of that person's race, religion, colour, descent or national or ethnic origin'. The AFL's rule was the first racial vilification code in Australia sport. The AFL lead the way with its code and subsequently most major national sports organisations, including Cricket Australia, introduced their own rules.
These voluntary sporting rules of conduct mirror Racial Discrimination Act 1975 and the Racial Hatred Act 1995 Section 18 C.(1) that: "It is unlawful for a person to do an act, otherwise than in private, if:
"(a) the act is reasonably likely, in all the circumstances, to offend, insult, humiliate or intimidate another person or a group of people; and
(b) the act is done because of the race, colour or national or ethnic origin of the other person or of some or all the people in the group. to offend, insult, humiliate or intimidate another person or group of people because of their race, colour, or ethnic or national origin".
Regarding diverse participation in Australian cricket, University of the Sunshine Coast researcher David Utting has examined how Cricket Australia until very recently aligned itself with notions of Anglo-Australia rather than embracing multiculturalism. Utting notes that between 1946 and 2015, there were only 10 Test players for the Australian men's team whose lineage was not ultimately British.
Even since then, players like Usman Khawaja, the first Australian of Pakistani origin to represent Australia, have criticised Cricket Australia's approach to multiculturalism and race. Victoria University Institute for Health and Sport research fellow Matthew Klugman has stated, 'The sense that cricket lags even behind other codes [on issues of race] is probably true. Historically it's been a much whiter sport than the various football codes. So that may be why it lacks the language to acknowledge the systemic nature of these problems.
They've been doing some work, for example bringing in the Johnny Mullagh medal, but there's a long way to go.'
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