ABC acts after Chris Lilley shows axed
THE ABC will now review all its content after the removal of four of Chris Lilley’s shows from Netflix.
Four of Lilley’s comedy series – Angry Boys, Summer Heights High, We Can Be Heroes and Jonah from Tonga – which were originally commissioned and championed by the ABC, have been removed from the streaming service because they include characters depicting Lilley as persons of colour, including Chinese physics student Ricky Wong, teenage delinquent Jonah from Tonga, African-American rapper S. Mouse and Japanese mother Jen Okazaki.
In a statement, the public broadcaster said it would be reviewing their content to ensure it meets “current community standards”.
“Community attitudes change across time and context, and we recognise that the ways in which some characters have been depicted in the past might be considered deeply objectionable or offensive today,” the statement said.
The removal of the shows from Netflix has been slammed by high-profile Australians who are concerned censorship is going too far.
New host of the 2GB breakfast show Ben Fordham said: “Are we led to believe we’re all racist for laughing along with Chris Lilley? How ridiculous. This cancel culture stuff is getting out of control.”
PRISON officers have been cleared of using excessive force against a 41-year-old Western Australian Aboriginal inmate who was taken to hospital in a critical condition, rejecting reports she had been “body slammed” by a guard.
The Department of Justice says the Bandyup Women’s Prison inmate had been found trying to access a vending machine and was ushered back to her cell, then hospitalised the following day.
An investigation has found no evidence she was subjected to excessive or unnecessary force by anyone.