Greens Senator Lydia Thorpe responds
Lydia Thorpe, who was one of the many First Nations People who had called for Eddie McGuire’s resignation, has given her thoughts on Eddie’s decision and announcement to Patricia Karvelas on ABC News Channel:
It is great that he’s had the courage to come out and own what he’s perpetrated for a number of years. It is great that the Collingwood board have also come to realise having a president that perpetrates this kind of systematic racism and racism in general is not the leadership that any organisation should have. It is not acceptable in a workplace.
On McGuire’s mention of the many initiatives the club has lead for Indigenous people during his tenure:
It is a bit like, “I am not racist because I have got an Aboriginal friend”. I don’t think that those comments help. I think that clearly Eddie himself has an issue with racism and he has some incredibly good, smart people at that organisation that have had genuine partnerships with Aboriginal communities and organisations and so they should. That is where systematic racism needs to continually be called out because you can be our friend, you can give us a little bit of money for a program, but ultimately if you are racist yourself, it comes through
Eddie has done the right thing. He has been a man, he’s stood up and I hope that a lot of others take his lead in knowing that you will not got away with systematic racism in this country anymore. It is 2021.
More from Lydia Thorpe
In Eddie’s words, it is a proud day for me and my people. My phone is going off, I have had ex-AFL players texting me throughout this interview saying this is great, this is a great day.
It is a proud day for Aboriginal people in this country and people of colour that we can stand in solidarity and we don’t have to do continue to be subjected to this kind of behaviour. Whatever level it is.
