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I've tried to stay away from the racism discussion this week. Coming off the back of invasion day, I wanted a lil separation from the violence of the colony. Yet here I am about to share thoughts on the violence and health impacts of racism. This will be lengthy...
White people who benefit from the structures and systems that maintain the subjugation of Indigenous, Black and People of Color, reify the racist discourse with questions such as "please explain your experience so I (we) can understand"...
Such questions were recently put forward by the mob on #TheProject RE: Heritier Lumumba wanting to understand his experinces which is a problematic question. I don't need to go into specifics as was poignantly discussed by brother @aamer_rahman 
https://twitter.com/aamer_rahman/status/1270515143529697281?s=20
https://twitter.com/aamer_rahman/status/1270515143529697281?s=20
What I can talk about, and FYI - this comes off the back of my research, is that there are multiple ways this discussion has focused the lens on Heritier, the recipient of the years of racial vilification and taunts and not the people perpetrating the violent behaviour
I won't weigh in on the report nor the CFC presser. Tbh I'm not a fan of AFL, and it is probably in my best interest that I stay away from the sport. I am a former rugby league player, yes I played as well as grew up around the sport that has its own issues. Ugghh.. I digress...
I am applying a critical race perspective (Sue etal, 2007) to provide an interpretation and understanding of the behaviours Heirtier has endured. Specifically, the use of micro and macroaggressions and how racism manifests.
People can experience micro & macroaggressions across various domains ie; race, gender, class, sexuality, disability etc. They can occur as a one off event, or simultaneously as a collective of experiences over time. See the video
To unpack this further, there are different types of microaggresions - Microinsults, Microassaults and Microinvalidations (Sue etal 2007) while also Macroagressions which are more group based, systemic and structural (Russell-Brown, 2009)
In Heritier's experience, I have witnessed the use of microinvalidations, no doubt he has been the recipient of microinsults and assaults. For this thread, I'm focusing on the microinvalidations, from the media clips, including statements made by the coach & those on #TheProject
All of these people who have a specific platform to influence others, the media, sporting team who have enacted a barrage of racial microinvalidations toward Heritier.
To explain further, microinvalidations disregard the recipients experience, ie; racial slurs, name calling. The invalidation has come through the denial of people within who claim to not have heard these being directed toward Heritier.
Social conditioning in the form of racial cognitive dissonance is at play with the denial and invalidation of Heritiers experience. Cognitive dissonance is where we are conditioned to certain set of beliefs and values, when those beliefs are challenged we choose to not engage.
What this means is that we become socially conditioned to believe name calling or hurtful statements wouldn't be made to or about people. That as humans we disavow being a 'bad' person & that this behaviour would be seen to be a negative plight on the person making the statements
So, just imagine the experience of the recipient. The person on the receiving end of these statements. Now go back up to the mosquito video. Imagine that experience happened multiple times in a day on multiple issues to a person or a group of people (the macro here now)...
This is violence. No doubt about it. In regards to the way Heritier has been treated in all of this, micoinvalidations are akin to experiencing gaslighting. Clearly, the club and #TheProject have participated and perpetrated these ideas regarding Heritiers' wellbeing.
This is just the tip of the iceberg in this analysis and probably something I'll write about later when I have more time. However, the impacts of racism also have a physiological affect on the body through the allostatic load (Sarnyai, 2016).
The allostatic load is a vital part of the fight or flight process of our body systems in order to survive. If there is an excessive activation of the allostatic load, the body continues to produce stress hormones which in turn can have major impacts on other body systems.
So... If we; Indigenous, Black and People of Color experience some form of discrimination and we speak about the impacts on health and wellbeing it is more than just the interpersonal relationships. It actually has an impact on the functioning of our bodies, pathophysiologically.
This is the neuroscience, and not just a behavioural observation. Work that is done in the trauma and violence space. Just for those nay sayers who think i'm telling a tall-story.
The questions that continue to be directed to us, about racism is experienced in order for white people to understand, is extremely problematic. The statements made by panel members on the #TheProject in relation to Heritier's experience are violent.
Have you ever, had an experience that was near death or so frightful that you have never want to speak on it again. This is what repeating experiences of violence produces by asking seemingly innocent questions.
FTR - It is not the recipients responsibility to up-skill people who are continually violent and who perpetrate micro and macroaggressions. You are overburdening them with lived experience, simultaneously expecting them to be your teacher.
As for the AFL, I would have thought this issue would have been addressed with the experiences of Adam Goodes, Nicky Winmar and Eddie Betts. Clearly there continues to be more work to be done.
Sport is a reflection of the community, what this tells me is that this country remains steadfast in its hegemonic whiteness. It remains in a state of cognitive dissonance and blinded by social conditioning where by it continues to be violent on non white bodies. End of thread.
