If you were scandalised by the racism inside the Collingwood Football Club, cop this. All over Australia, there are Facebook groups targeting Indigenous kids by posting photos and naming those who’ve allegedly been involved in property offences. Bad enough. Then these groups encourage vigilantism.
“Time these little grubs disappeared”, “soon enough this is going to be a bloody blood shed someones [sic] going to die”, “shoot every single one” and “why don’t we all get a few dads together and teach these young want a be [sic] gansgters a f—ing lesson I got about 8 blokes keen as f— already let’s run these little scum bags out of town”.
As the now former Collingwood president Eddie McGuire was rightly castigated for declaring that the release of the Do Better report into the club’s history of “systemic racism” was actually a “historic and proud day for the club”, a 22-year-old woman was killed in Townsville, caught up in a stolen car chase. Locals claim vigilantism was involved. One Townsville woman says the dramatic increase in youth crime has seen a spike in online racism, urging vigilantism.
No stars, no sporting figures – just kids with targets on their back. These groups were revealed by Chris Cunneen, professor at the Indigenous Law and Justice Hub at the Jumbunna Institute at the University of Technology Sydney, and his co-author Sophie Russell.
Read the article by Jenna Price in The Sydney Morning Herald.