The AFL, alongside the Hawthorn Football Club, has denounced the “You can talk shit all you want but don’t be like this guy,” racial abuse directed at player Mabior Chol through multiple direct messages on social media platforms.
Chol, who plays as a forward for Hawthorn and has South Sudanese roots, shared a screenshot of the offensive comments he received on Instagram after his team’s defeat against the Western Bulldogs on Friday night. The language used in these messages was deemed inappropriate for publication.
In his post, Chol remarked, “Racism has no place anywhere, anytime – not in our game, not in the community and not online,” highlighting the unacceptable nature of the comments.
During the match, Chol managed to score three goals, tying for the highest in the game, although Hawthorn ultimately lost with a score of 12.5 (77) to 9.17 (71) at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
The 29-year-old, who previously played for Gold Coast and Richmond, has faced racial abuse throughout his ten-year career in the AFL.
On Saturday, the AFL’s integrity unit, in collaboration with Hawthorn, confirmed an ongoing investigation into this recent incident.
If the individual responsible is identified, they could face a ban from attending AFL matches in the future.
AFL Chief Executive Andrew Dillon criticized the messages, stating, “Players, or anyone, should never be subjected to this sort of abuse. “To be clear, if you think this behaviour is acceptable, then you are not welcome in our game. “Mabior’s courage to call this out should be commended and our immediate focus is supporting him and the Hawthorn Football Club.” Dillon emphasized that athletes, or anyone else, should never endure such treatment.
“There is no place for racism in our game and in our society,” Dillon added. “If you are the sort of person who thinks it’s OK to make a comment or send a message like this, we don’t want you as part of our game. “We commend Mabior’s courage in calling this out and we stand with him. “Our immediate focus is on wrapping our arms around and supporting Mabior.”
Hawthorn Chief Executive Ash Klein echoed these sentiments, characterizing the behavior as “vile and appalling” and asserting that it is “simply not acceptable.” The club has pledged its support to Chol during this troubling time.
“There is no place for racism in our game and in our society,” Klein stated. “If you are the sort of person who thinks it’s OK to make a comment or send a message like this, we don’t want you as part of our game. We commend Mabior’s courage in calling this out and we stand with him. Our immediate focus is on wrapping our arms around and supporting Mabior.”
