Mitch Brown Calls Out AFL Player’s Casual Homophobia On Instagram

Mitch Brown has called out a social media post from Geelong player Bailey Smith for perpetuating casual homophobia during Mad Monday celebrations yesterday.

The former West Coast player made history last month by becoming the first AFL player in the game’s 129 year history to come out as bisexual, and has since been vocal on the way queer people are treated in the industry.

A post from Smith showed him and team captain, Patrick Dangerfield, at Geelong’s Mad Monday function, with Smith dressed as Brad Pitt from the film Legends of the Fall, and Dangerfield dressed as a cowboy from the TV show Yellowstone.

“Or brokeback mountain depends how ya look at it,” Smith captioned a photo of the pair. This was followed with a post of the pair recreating a pose from Brokeback Mountain alongside the caption “this is what losing a granny does to ya. Alright phone away now bye”.

Although not making an explicit reference to Smith and Dangerfield’s social media behaviour, Brown posted an Instagram story of Brokeback Mountain lead, Heath Ledger alongside the caption, “Just for the record, Heath Ledger’s way hotter”.

This was followed up with a seperate post saying, “In all seriousness though, guys do better.

“Last time I checked, losing a grand final doesn’t make you gay, but being homophobic definitely makes you a loser.”

Neither Smith or Dangerfield have made a public comment in the wake of Brown’s post.

Brown says league homophobia “cultural, systematic” 

While Smith’s post may seem like a bit of innocent fun, it takes a more sinister shade given the how LGBTQIA+ people are treated in the league.

Last week, AFL boss, Andrew Demetriou, denied the sport’s deep-rooted culture of homophobia, and said he’s certain that any players who decide to come out are sure to be welcomed in the league.

The comments were made in the wake of Brown’s repeated references to the rampant “hyper-masculine” culture of AFL in discussions around his sexuality, referencing multiple instances where he was made to feel as though he’d never be able to come out.

“I think that any player who feels it’s necessary and important to reveal their sexuality will be embraced,” Demetriou said in an interview with ABC Sport.

“I’m sure there will be sectors of the community that will have an issue with it, just as they have with Indigenous players or players of different backgrounds.

“But I think they will be embraced, welcomed, and I don’t think there is an unsafe space in the AFL industry.

“The AFL is a very welcoming place across all areas.”

Only last month, Adelaide Crows forward Izak Rankine, received a reduced four-game suspension for using a homophobic slur during a match with Collingwood, becoming the sixth player to receive a suspension for such behaviour in the space of 16 months.

Speaking on The Imperfects podcast last week, Brown said that the issue of homophobia in the AFL was much bigger than the actions of individual players.

“I would never point out an individual, I would never do that,” Brown said. “Because it’s more than that, it’s bigger than that- it’s cultural, it’s systematic.”