Ex-Collingwood star Heritier Lumumba slams former club over discrimination investigation
Five weeks on from Collingwood’s announcement of an investigation into Heritier Lumumba’s claims of discrimination, the former Pie has taken to Twitter to slam the Pies again.
Collingwood
Don't miss out on the headlines from Collingwood. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Collingwood premiership player Heritier Lumumba has accused the Magpies of trying to “squash his story” in another blistering attack on his former club.
Lumumba, who had already questioned the Magpies’ independent review into his claims of racism, took to Twitter on Friday night to deliver Collingwood another stinging rebuke.
Watch Footy LIVE & On-Demand Every Day from July 29 – August 17 with Kayo. New to Kayo? Get your 14-day free trial & start streaming instantly >
“Five weeks since announcing their integrity commission to deal with my allegations, the Collingwood Football Club has yet to release the scope or parameters of their investigation,” Lumumba tweeted.
“I maintain that no investigation or review process is valid without first acknowledging the harm that has been done.
“This is not simply about my time as a player, but the effort that was made to discredit me when I came forward.
1/ Five weeks since announcing their integrity commission to deal with my allegations, the Collingwood Football Club has yet to release the scope or parameters of their investigation.
— Hériter Lumumba (@iamlumumba) July 31, 2020
“CFC must also take responsibility for pushing me out while under contract and attempting to squash my story.
“This is as important as admitting they did not adequately support me as a player.
“This is why people do not come forward with their experiences and speak out; they fear exactly the type of retribution and attacks on their reputation that I was subjected to by Collingwood.
“The discrimination that I faced was specifically due to me being African.
“Any true growth on the part of CFC requires acknowledging that the club fundamentally lacked the cultural literacy to provide a safe working environment for someone of African descent.”
MORE AFL:
Gary Buckenara opens up on his battle with depression and struggling with life after football
Jack Steele, Brayden Maynard among new faces in Mark Robinson’s mid-season All-Australian team
Former Gold Coast player Joel Wilkinson last month claimed AFL boss Gillon McLachlan’s position was “untenable” because of his handling of racial issues.
Wilkinson took to Twitter to declare he had received a letter that was “so racist you won’t get away with it”, while also taking the league to task over vaccinations given to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander players at its Queensland hub.
Lumumba said Wilkinson’s claims must be investigated.
“Since I came forward, a number of other issues have come to light, including racism within the official CFC cheer squad & racism faced by other players,” he tweeted.
“For example, Joel Wilkinson, whose vilification by Collingwood fans was publicly whitewashed by CFC.
“These must also be investigated.”