Community slams Akers
AFL footballer Jason Akermanis has provoked widespread anger over comments he made in an opinion piece in Melbourne’s Herald Sun last Thursday.
In a column titled ‘Stay in the closet’, Akermanis advised any gay AFL players thinking of coming out to “forget it”, saying the fallout could “break the fabric of the club”.
“I believe it would cause discomfort in that [locker room] environment should someone declare himself gay,” he wrote.
Akermanis’ comments have provoked outrage and disappointment from both the sporting and GLBTI communities. His own club, the Western Bulldogs, and the AFL have distanced themselves from him, saying openly gay players are welcome in the AFL.
Newly-out Olympian Daniel Kowalski reacted strongly to the column, telling Triple M in a radio interview, “I’m disappointed. I’m mad. I’m angry. I’m sad. When you get comments like that from a guy of his stature, why would you come out?”
Family Planning Victoria CEO Lynne Jordan said Akermanis was “sending a misguided and negative message to his teammates and the general community,” while ACON CEO Nicolas Parkhill described his comments as “ignorant and dangerous”.
Freezone Volleyball president Wally Salinger told Sydney Star Observer that Akermanis could potentially be in breach of the AFL’s code of conduct.
“Should there ever be a barrier to players being themselves — whether that is based on sexuality, ethnicity or religion — the AFL would be in breach of legislation, and its own code of conduct. The conformity battle that confronts teenagers, whose reality is often consumed by a passion such as sport, is not helped by AFL role models publicly pleading that gays should hide.”
Akermanis himself dismissed the backlash in an interview with Melbourne Talk Radio the day after the column was published. “There’s articles everywhere written from these guys and all of them, of course, are gay so they think they know everything,” he said.
Freedom of speech? I’m not allowed to accuse people of being drug dealers or child molestors if the mood takes me. Correction: I am free to do so and they are free to sue the arse off me.
Akermanis has a lot more freedom of speech than most of us given he attracts headlines. And those of us who have accused him of slandering gay people are simply using our freedom of speech in response.
In 2010, I am personally getting so sick and tired of the age old and hiding behind the “freedom of speech defence” that makes it an OK justifiable excuse to go out and deliberately vilify gay men!!!!!!
Let me tell you something gay men DO pay AFL and other sports – just as well [if not better] as bisexuals and heterosexuals.
Vilifying gay men is unacceptable and this footballer brings a bad-name to other footballers. He is just a bone-head embarrassing himself looking for fame and ratings – just like Tony Abbott in Question time at 2pm.
The Herald Sun again vilified people from our community publishing Gay Hate comments. Today they published a story on Jason Akermanis house and car being egged. The paper implied it was Gays who did it. They then allowed more vilification through the comments section with homosexual jokes included.
This is despite Jason not even knowing who did it. There were two attacks, one before his comments, and one after. Clearly saying Gays did it has no foundation. The Headline was “Star’s home vandalized after Gay Comments”.
This is the news link http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/jason-akermanis-furious-after-car-and-house-targeted-by-egg-throwers/story-e6frf7jo-1225870940571
I think Jason is using the Herald Sun to attack people who happen to be Gay.
leave aka alone those cowards egging his home and car are real low how would they like it to happen to their property
and this is australia there is meant to be Freedom of speech
whether he is right or wrong on this topic get off your high horse some of these so called people i bet none of them have read his full article just the headline