CHILDHOOD can be a hostile place. The recent ejection of an AFL fan yelling racist abuse from a match is a case in point.
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The brave decision by indigenous player Adam Goodes to point out the 13-year-old girl to security guards, who marched her out of the ground, has focused attention on just how entrenched and reflexive racism is in this country.
That the young girl claims not to have known how offensive the word “ape” was to Goodes and, for that matter, any indigenous person illustrates how far we have still to travel until racism is banished from our society. Not knowing that a word can cut deeply suggests much education is needed for the young girl, her family and her peers.
In speaking about his offence, Goodes also revealed how he had been bullied in high school when he was not able to defend himself. That made taking a stand against this throwaway line even more important. The message has to get out that demeaning anyone because of their race is not tolerated in a civilised society.
That means standing up to bullies and stepping in to tell people who make racist quips that they are not funny and certainly not acceptable. It means explaining to children who utter racist insults that their words are hurtful and make them look stupid.
We like to think of ourselves as being a fair minded and tolerant society but when racism becomes reflexive, when it means nothing to render someone less than human because of their skin colour, that self-assessment becomes meaningless.
