Stan Grant said he needs to take a break from television presenting to ask how and if “we can do better”, and that the media has serious work to do, during an emotional speech at the end of Monday night’s Q&A program.
Grant shared the powerful words after announcing he would be taking a break from the show on Friday.
Last night he said he was stepping away not because of racism, and not because of the social media hatred. Rather, he said he needed a break from the media. “I feel like I’m part of the problem. And I need to ask myself how, or if, we can do better.”
“We in the media must ask if we are truly honouring a world worth living in. Too often, we are the poison in the bloodstream of our society. I fear the media does not have the love or the language to speak to the gentle spirits of our land.”
He said those who had attacked him and his family had succeeded if their mission was to hurt him. But he also said sorry to them.
“To those who have abused me and my family. I would just say if your aim was to hurt me, well you’ve succeeded, and I’m sorry.
“I’m sorry that I must have given you so much cause to hate me so much, to target me and my family and to make threats against me. I’m sorry.
“Sometimes we need to just take time out. Sometimes our souls are hurting and so it is for me. I’ve had to learn that endurance is not always strength. Sometimes strength is knowing when to say stop.
“I am down right now, I am. But I will get back up. And you can come at me again, and I will meet you with the love of my people,” he said.
Grant also apologised to his people, during the address which received a standing ovation.
“To my people – I have always wanted to represent you with pride. I know I might disappoint you sometimes, but in my own little way, I’ve just wanted to make us seen. And I’m sorry that I can’t do that for a little while.”
Last week Grant penned a powerful piece about the “relentless racial filth” he has faced, and said that since his appearance on a panel during the King’s coronation, he has seen “people in the media lie and distort my words”. He said he felt unsupported by the ABC, with the ABC since apologising and saying it will undertake a review into its response to racism.
The comments from Grant came last week, following his appearance on a panel about the coronation of King Charles. He said he had felt unsupported by the ABC and its leadership as he faced racially-charged backlash online and in the media.
“Since the King’s coronation, I have seen people in the media lie and distort my words. They have tried to depict me as hate-filled. They have accused me of maligning Australia,” Grant wrote in a piece published by the ABC on Friday.