“The A-W-F-L, the awful, that’s the women’s league… how do you reckon the ‘awful’s’ going… it’s basically a lesbian league.”
Even for Sam Newman, these comments are low.
The former Footy Show presenter turned rogue commentator seems to get a kick out of controversy and causing offence but in a recent rant on his podcast, the conversation took a dark turn.
After dehumanising an entire league of professional athletes, Newman went on an unhinged rant about pride events and Welcome to Country ceremonies.
His comments appeared to stun former North Melbourne player Wayne Carey who tried to interject and correct Newman a number of times.
The podcast episode which remains online has been slammed by many.
Our Watch CEO Patty Kinnersly says the link between cultures of sexism and the prevalence of violence against women is well-established.
“When public figures make sexist and homophobic comments about women athletes, it reinforces harmful norms across society,” she tells Women’s Agenda.
“Luckily, most Australians don’t agree with that commentator, and AFLW has been experiencing growth in match attendance and streaming numbers over the last few years.
“To prevent violence against women, we need to work together to promote a culture of respect and equality in sport, media and public life.
“That means challenging sexist language and behaviour when we see it.”
A number of media personalities, athletes and activists have come to the defence of AFLW while shunning Newman’s comments. In response to a clip of the podcast shared on Women’s Agenda’s Instagram page, hundreds of messages have been left in support of the women and girls who continue to work day-in and day-out to take their league to new heights.
Appearance activist Carly Findlay OAM was one of them, describing Newman as a “dinosaur”.
“These dinosaurs need to be quiet,” she wrote.
Olympian Georgie Parker also commended Carey for his responses during the conversation.
“Wayne did a good job here,” she said.
“As sad as listening to this is, the only people Sam is talking to are the people who listen to his irrelevant podcast who will never change their opinion anyway so it’s not even worth being angry over.
“Ignoring them and spending more time changing the minds of the people on the fence is what will move the needle.
“I think [Wayne] was really respectful to the league … combatting with bluntness doesn’t get a point across any better.”