SMS hotlines and online tools to tackle racist abuse at Australian sporting events | Australia sport

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Spectators who witness racist abuse at professional sporting events will soon be able to alert officials via text message under new guidelines set by the Australian Human Rights Commission and endorsed by some major sports bodies and stadiums.

Cricket Australia, AFL, NRL and Tennis Australia are among 15 signatories of the guidelines which the AHRC hopes will help prevent further incidents like those which occurred in Australia’s third test against India. at Sydney Cricket Ground in January and, when they do, educate fans, officials and players on how to respond.

After the second and third days of this match were overshadowed by allegations of fan-led racist slurs against Mohammed Siraj and Jasprit Bumrah, the commission called a roundtable and invited professional codes, clubs, players. , site operators and anti-racism experts to participate for months. – long consultations.

The result, released Wednesday, is a six-page document outlining advice designed to support already existing policies and procedures used by sport codes and venue operators, with a focus “on the experiences of those targeted by racism. and others (including witnesses) who may be affected ”.

Entitled Racism. No one wins, it offers clear procedures for “safe and rapid” reporting of racist incidents by spectators, including through “SMS hotlines”. [and] web tools on sports codes’ websites.

It also recommends that players, staff and officials be regularly trained to identify who to tell and when, and how security staff can defuse situations and remove spectators from a pitch if necessary. Targets of racism and witnesses who witness it should benefit from counseling and other support mechanisms.

Perpetrators, according to the guidelines, should have their membership suspended, be banned altogether, or their readmission conditional on participation in anti-racist training, but appropriate to the age and understanding of the perpetrators, especially in the case of children.

The guidelines, developed within the framework of Racism. The It Stops With Me campaign also offers measures to prevent racism from happening in the first place, such as publishing clear definitions of racial discrimination and racial defamation, and including a zero tolerance approach. in the terms and conditions of the ticket office.

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The other signatories are: Sport Australia, Australian Institute of Sport, Golf Australia, Australian Basketball Players’ Association, SCG, Sydney Football Stadium, Commbank Stadium, Adelaide Oval, McDonald Jones Stadium, Newcastle Entertainment Center, Stadiums Queensland, Venues NSW, WIN Entertainment Center, WIN Stadium and the Anti-Racism Project.

The guidelines are intended as the first phase of an on-going partnership with the codes, clubs and signatory sites to strengthen their work and anti-racism policies. At this point, they only cover professional sport, not grassroots football. They are also limited to racism on the ground on sports venues – no research has been conducted on racist abuse online.

“Sport has a unique place in Australian society – it embodies our values ​​of equality and fairness and helps us connect with each other,” said Chin Tan, AHRC Racial Discrimination Commissioner. “But unfortunately racism in sport remains an ongoing problem.”

Australia has not been immune to the global surge in taunts against black and indigenous players of all sports.

AFL great Adam Goodes retired due to persistent racial abuse, Heir Lumumba endured 10 years of racist taunts while playing for Collingwood and A-League Men forward Bernie Ibini is one of many footballers. to have suffered abuse.

After the January cricket test, Indian veteran Ravichandran Ashwin claimed he had been the victim of abuse by crowds in Sydney for nearly a decade.

“When racist incidents do occur, they can have a lasting impact on the people concerned and damaging social consequences. There is no place for racism anywhere, and that includes sport, ”said Tan.

“We need consistent and strong responses to spectator racism across sporting codes to send a united message that racism will not be tolerated and that there will be serious consequences when it does occur.”

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