Former footy show host Sam Newman gave AFL a serve after being forced to read a controversial email that picked out indigenous players.
Newman said on Sunday, AFL’s official announcement to club doctors that it was mandatory for indigenous and Torres Strait Island players to be given pneumococcal vaccination, “is the epitome of racism.”
The league was forced to make an apology on Friday after reports of a communication disorder related to new Queensland government health advice.
It soon turned out that the AFL had misinterpreted the Queensland government’s tightening of border controls and that the vaccination shot was not required under the game’s stringent biosecurity protocols, which gave AFL players special exemptions to be stationed in Queensland and other teams to continue flying on and off the interstate on matchday.
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Newman said AFL was guilty of exactly what the game consistently preached against on Sunday – as the strong Black Lives Matter demonstrations demonstrated by players earlier this season with the full support of league officials show.
“It’s not often that the people who accuse you usually make it much worse,” Newman wrote on Twitter.
“The AFL, which requires Aboriginal players to follow different security protocols, is the epitome of ‘racism’. Waiting for the pitiful explanation. #BLM ”
When a fan pointed out that the AFL had misunderstood the Queensland government’s health council, Newman replied that it was the “first PATHETIC excuse.”
The AFL published a statement in which it confessed to its affairs.
“The AFL acknowledges that it could receive and share more information about vaccination from the Queensland government’s health authorities, including the underlying health security benefits, and that it can improve its information delivery processes to club doctors ensuring cultural security in the provision of health support to the indigenous people and the islanders of Torres Strait, ”said an AFL statement on Friday.
“AFL strives to work closely with AFLPA and the players, our clubs and our doctors to resolve the situation.”
Newman was forced to apologize earlier this month and pay compensation to AFL legend Nicky Winmar after a podcast he was involved in publicly questioned the St. Kilda star’s iconic gesture of shouting racism .
Podcast presenters Newman, Mike Sheahan and Don Scott apologized for the moment they rewrote the story around the day. Winmar raised his shirt to show his pride in being an Indigenous Australian after being racially abused by Collingwood fans in 1993.
It was reported that Newman, Sheahan and Scott had agreed to make a significant donation to an indigenous charity as part of the settlement, which was closed with Winmar and photographer Wayne Ludbey.
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