Australia, what’s good!? Just a week after an Australian newspaper published a cartoon drawing showing an exaggerated caricature of Serena Williams stomping on her tennis racket, now 3 Australian football players are apologizing for posting a photo of them in full blackface supposedly emulating Serena and Venus Williams as well as Sydney Swans #AFL player Aliir Aliir.
In the photo, which has since been removed from social media, players Mitch Stanley and Matt Chamberlain are wearing tennis skirts, black wigs and black body paint on every visible part of their bodies. Player Beau Grundy is also in the photo dressed up as Kenyan-born, Aliir Aliir. The teammates were celebrating “Mad Monday”, which are traditional end-of-season festivities for football players.
The picture drew major backlash on the #Facebook and one user said, “Some Australians still have no clue what is considered racist. This Mad Monday ‘costume’ is clearly racist. And I’m a person who is fed up with today’s over-the-top political correctness.
The Penguin Football Club issued an apology stating the photo is “unacceptable in this day and age” but they went on to say, “it was not their intention to upset anyone and all they meant to do was dress as one of their sporting idols. Their actions were never intended to be racist in any way. Those concerned have been reprimanded and will be given support to make sure they understand that their behavior was racist and hurtful and that it will not happen again. The players concerned have acknowledged that what they did was completely and utterly unacceptable and would like to apologize unreservedly for their lack of judgment.”
Not quite sure what the deal is with Australia and their perception of Serena Williams, amongst other black athletes, but it should be made clear we don’t play that about our athletes here in America!
