Cricket’s bid to confront racism

Cricket Australia has offered Andrew Symonds an open invitation to chat to them about the scars from the infamous Monkeygate racism scandal.

Andrew Symonds clashed with Harbhajan Singh at the SCG in 2008.

Cricket Australia has offered Andrew Symonds an open invitation to chat to them about 12-year-old scars that have never properly healed from the infamous Monkeygate racism scandal.

The organisation has bravely resolved to look itself in the mirror in a bid to truly practice what it preaches in regards to reconciliation and promoting greater cultural awareness and diversity in cricket.

Twenty20 superstar Dan Christian has opened up about the casual racism he has experienced in cricket and called on the game to better educate players on cultural issues as part of a new online panel show initiative from Cricket Australia called Cricket Connecting Countr.

The initiative aims to encourage participants to be upfront about their experiences, even if that means holding the game to account for past failings.

Symonds has opened up in recent years about how he fell into a spiral of alcohol abuse following an ugly racism scandal where he and several Australian players claimed Indian star Harbhajan Singh called him a “monkey” during a Test at the SCG in 2008.

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Former Australian captain Ricky Ponting said several years ago that the CA administration of the time had let down Symonds by refusing to take a more powerful stand against the might of the Indian cricket board.

Cricket Australia’s Diversity and Inclusion Manager Adam Cassidy said that it was imperative that the game is able to properly confront its past if it’s to fulfil the aim of being leaders in Indigenous and cultural affairs.

Cassidy said no pressure would be placed on Symonds to speak about his experiences, but that the game would welcome any chance to sit down and listen.

“I personally don’t know Andrew myself and I think what’s really important is that the burden of responsibility to talk about this stuff or to come forward should never really sit with anyone who has experienced any form of discrimination or racism,” said Cassidy.

“We are really conscious that by doing this what we’re trying to provide is a safe platform and to show that we’re a sport that is very happy to reach out and listen to people’s stories if that’s what they’re comfortable doing.

“Yes we’ve got some people who have been reaching out to Andrew just to check in on him, but to be very clear, this is not about him necessarily. But having said that, if he wants to come and chat to us we’re very, very keen to chat through his experience with him and see what we can do to help.”

Cricket Australia is determined to celebrate Indigenous culture, and the Australian men’s and women’s teams are set to recognise Aboriginal people during respective international matches this summer.

But Cassidy said hard conversations also had to be had.

“True reconciliation is when you also acknowledge things that perhaps haven’t been as good in the past and rectifying those appropriately,” he said.

“That’s where this series (Cricket Connecting Country) is contributing to.

“A big unknown is how big the wound is at grassroots level across all sport.

“While it’s really difficult as a national body to be directly accountable or directly influence that, we have a huge responsibility to educate as best we can so the grassroots club environment is a safe space for everybody to be involved in.

“We may also find things over the years that … the ecosystem of cricket has caused. And they’re things we’d have to address separately to the grassroots stuff as well.

“It will be interesting. I would like to think it’s brave but sometimes I think you’ve got to get vulnerable and you’ve got to get brave if you’re going to make change. If it’s comfortable then we’re probably not doing enough.”

The Daily Telegraph