Inside story of why Aboriginal footballers raised concerns about being forced to have pneumococcal vaccination
Footy analyst Craig Hutchison says the AFL’s Indigenous players should not have publicly condemned the league’s controversial vaccine injection plan. But an ex-Olympian has slammed him for “downplaying” the issue.
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Olympic gold medallist Nova Peris has taken aim at footy bigwig Craig Hutchison for suggesting the AFL’s Aboriginal players “inflamed” the vaccine saga by speaking out publicly on the weekend.
The league’s 87 Indigenous players remain angry at an AFL directive that singled them out from white teammates to be given pneumococcal vaccinations before entering their clubs’ Queensland hubs.
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Hutchison, whose Crocmedia business controls the AFL’s lucrative radio rights, suggested on Channel 9 on Monday night that the players would have been better served keeping the issue in-house.
“I really feel for the Indigenous players because it was not well communicated to them by the medicos … it’s a very complicated issue where the absolute best support must be given, (but) I didn’t think it was in the interests of the players to put that out as a press release on Saturday and inflame the issue a little bit further,” Hutchison said.
“I didn’t think that was necessary.”
Hutchison’s Footy Classified co-panelist, Caroline Wilson, responded: “What, so you cover it up? Why would you cover it up?”
Peris, an ex-federal Senator and member of Essendon’s reconciliation committee, said Hutchison’s comment “was a typical response considering how previous race issues have been dealt with by privileged white men in the media”.
“This isn’t just a medical blunder. This is a race issue,” Peris said.
“I applaud Caroline Wilson for taking this seriously and not letting Craig Hutchison sweep it under the carpet like he appeared to want to do on the Footy Classified program.
“Once again we are being told to shut up. It is nowhere near good enough.
"It's a shocker for the AFL"
— Footy on Nine (@FootyonNine) July 20, 2020
Caroline Wilson brings us the latest on the 'mandatory' vaccinations the league imposed on the game's indigenous players.#9FootyClassified | Watch @channel9 pic.twitter.com/PEa1YO2jKx
“Hutchison wanted to downplay it and move on. Why are we Aboriginal people always told how we should feel?”
Peris said the game’s Aboriginal players deserved answers over who ordered the injections and what roles were played by the league’s general manager of inclusion Tanya Hosch and its chief medical officer, Dr Peter Harcourt.
“I was told that Aboriginal players, their partners and children also had to comply,” Peris said.
“However, if the player’s wife or partner is non-Indigenous then they are exempt.
“This is racial divide at its finest.”
WHO AT AFL GAVE INJECTION ORDER?
The messages to the WhatsApp group started flying thick and fast on Friday night.
Those involved in the conversation included some of the AFL’s greatest indigenous players, both past and present, with their focus on a requirement for all Aboriginal players to have a pneumococcal vaccination to enter the Queensland hubs.
Several were confused. Others were downright angry that they had to have an extra injection, and not their white teammates. The consensus being that an explanation was required immediately.
The AFLPA was already on the case.
They players’ union had heard rumblings about the issue and weren’t happy that they’d been kept in the dark about the medical requirement.
By Saturday morning there were a flurry of phone calls and Zoom meetings between AFL heavyweights, the AFLPA, multiple players and several distressed family members.
In one meeting, involving the league’s general manager of inclusion and social policy Tanya Hosch, a reference was made to the AFL operating without a Reconciliation Action Plan: “If you had a RAP, maybe this wouldn’t have happened.”
By this stage the players were still under the impression that it was a Queensland Government directive to have the vaccination in order to gain entry into the state.
A text message sent out by one club doctor said: “Unfortunately the QLD government has mandated that it is required for indigenous footy players entering QLD.”
But when the story broke in the Herald Sun on Saturday afternoon, the Queensland Government was quick to put some facts on the table.
A Queensland Health spokesman said: “The decision for some players to have pneumococcal vaccinations was made by the relevant sporting code. People can apply for relevant exemptions directly with the sporting code.”
Suddenly the narrative had changed and the AFL had itself a hot potato which was threatening to divide its playing group.
And it was getting hotter by the hour with some calling it an infringement on their human rights according to the United Nations Declaration on the rights of indigenous Peoples.....while Olympic gold medallist Nova Peris dubbed it “vaccine racism”.
Eventually an unprecedented apology came out of AFL headquarters but even that left more questions than answers with the league’s suggestion it was just a “communication breakdown” annoying the already unsettled playing group.
The players still want to know who at the AFL ordered the club doctors to give the pneumonia injections?
And what was the role of Hosch and the AFL’s chief medical officer Dr Peter Harcourt?
Some players alleged Hosch had known about the issue as far back as May and had even spoken to football managers at several clubs about the extra vaccination.
But no-one told the 87 male Indigenous players in the AFL, let alone their family members who come under the same protocols should they enter the Gold Coast hubs.
By Monday the AFL was still investigating but the injection program for any Indigenous players who were yet to arrive in Queensland has stopped.
The AFLPA has continued to express its concern about the issue, and confirmed on Monday it was continuing to gather information to determine its next steps.
The league clearly wants the issue to go away but it has long crossed over the line of just being a football issue. Some are calling for an independent investigation.
As Peris pointed out on social media, there was no medical rationale to begin with and no cultural understanding of the situation:
“This segregated treatment is traumatic for Aboriginal people given the intergenerational trauma with using Aboriginal kids over the decades as ‘Lab Rats‘ in Medical experiments,” she said.
PLAYERS CAN DECLINE INJECTIONS: LEAGUE
The AFL has told Indigenous players entering Queensland they do not need a pneumonia injection amid fury at the lack of cultural sensitivity towards those players.
The league apologised on Saturday to players about the lack of consultation and miscommunication after only indigenous players were told they needed the injections prior to entering hubs.
Melbourne, Hawthorn, Collingwood and Geelong will in coming days and weeks enter hubs in Queensland.
The AFL has now clarified that players can decline those injections and still be eligible to play.
The player union will canvass its group of Indigenous players in coming days to assess the fallout given the anger and dismay at the “secretive” vaccines.
The AFLPA believes there are issues regarding informed consent, with players feeling discriminated against due to race and the lack of cultural sensitivity in how information was communicated to the player cohort.
Players were preparing for games when the player union first became aware of the issue on Thursday.
But further talks are planned in coming days with Indigenous players keen for a process in future where there is better consultation about issues affecting Indigenous players.
The AFL apologised on Saturday night to indigenous players and staff for the vaccine bungle.
“The AFL apologises to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander players and staff and the AFLPA for not providing sufficient clarity around Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander players receiving a pneumococcal vaccination ahead of entering Queensland and for any distress this has caused them and their families,” it said in a statement.
“The AFL acknowledges it could have obtained and shared more information from the Queensland Government health authorities regarding the vaccination, including the underlying health safety benefits and that it can improve its processes in providing information to support club doctors in ensuring cultural safety in provision of health to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.”
Port Adelaide’s general manager of football Chris Davies said the club’s indigenous players who went to the Power’s Gold Coast hub all received the jab.
Davies said none of the players had raised any concerns initially at having to receive the injection when the club relocated to Queensland in June.
“That was one of the things that the AFL had told every club that needed to happen,” he said.
“So our blokes were in a position where they went through that process and no issues from our end.
“(There were) no concerns at the particular point in time, obviously it’s become an issue with the Victorian teams having to go into Queensland but that will be an issue for the AFL.”
Port Adelaide’s general manager of football Chris Davies said the club’s indigenous players who went to the Power’s Gold Coast hub all received the jab.
Davies said none of the players had raised any concerns initially at having to receive the injection when the club relocated to Queensland in June.
“That was one of the things that the AFL had told every club that needed to happen,” he said.
“So our blokes were in a position where they went through that process and no issues from our end.
“(There were) no concerns at the particular point in time, obviously it’s become an issue with the Victorian teams having to go into Queensland but that will be an issue for the AFL.”
– with Simeon Thomas-Wilson
AFL APOLOGISES OVER INDIGENOUS JABS PLAN
The AFL has issued an unprecedented apology to its Indigenous players over a directive which required them to have a pneumonia injection to enter the Queensland hub.
While all AFL players have been required to have flu shots before heading to the Gold Coast, only Indigenous players were forced to have pneumococcal vaccines.
The issue caused a divide in the game, with the league accused of being “secretive” about the extra injection.
“The players had no idea and some Aboriginal players are refusing to do it,” a prominent Indigenous AFL figure said.
“No one else apart from the Aboriginal boys are required to have this extra shot.
“What angered them more was this was never mentioned when the long list of requirements for the hub were initially given out.
“And now they’re being told to have the shot or you won’t play.”
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AFLPA boss Paul Marsh confirmed he was also kept in the dark and is demanding answers from the AFL.
“In the past 48 hours the AFLPA has become aware of Indigenous players being required to have pneumococcal vaccinations prior to entering AFL High Performance Centres (Hubs),” Marsh said.
“We are very concerned about this issue and since becoming aware of it, we’ve had various conversations with players and the AFL, and are in the process of gathering more information to inform what actions we may take.
“The fact that these vaccinations were not discussed with the AFLPA as part of the return play protocols or otherwise, is a significant issue we have raised with the AFL.
“We are now working directly with players to ensure they understand their rights and options available to them regarding any requested vaccinations.”
The AFL issued an apology late on Saturday for the distress it had caused the players and their families.
“The AFL apologises to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander players and staff and the AFLPA for not providing sufficient clarity around Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander players receiving a pneumococcal vaccination ahead of entering Queensland and for any distress this has caused them and their families,” the AFL statement read.
“The AFL acknowledges it could have obtained and shared more information from the Queensland Government health authorities regarding the vaccination, including the underlying health safety benefits and that it can improve its processes in providing information to support club doctors in ensuring cultural safety in provision of health to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
“The AFL is committed to working closely with the AFLPA and the players, our clubs and our doctors to resolve the situation.”
The players had been under the impression the Queensland Government had mandated the extra injection for entry into the state. But that has been denied, with the finger pointed at the AFL.