Truth-telling Grant needs to speak out again

Stan Grant copped enormous criticism for his coronation comments. In response, Stan spoke about being targeted with racial abuse. However, I don’t think it was Stan’s commentary of the coronation alone that brought on the deluge of complaints to the ABC.

I think Stan is the whipping boy for mainstream Australians who are tired of being unjustly accused of being racist, while there is silence about what role Aboriginal people play in the problems they face. But let me be clear here: Being frustrated in no way justifies a racist attack on Grant or anyone else.

I can recall watching Q&A one night when Stan was hosting. Alan Jones was on the panel and spoke about the problems of violence that occur in far too many Aboriginal communities. This was a great opportunity for Stan to highlight this problem. But he didn’t. He changed course quickly.

On Australia Day, Australians are accused of celebrating genocide. When there is a story of an Aboriginal death in custody, it is devoid of the crucial context that Aboriginal Australians in custody are not more likely to die than non-Aboriginal Australians in custody. Claims of rampant racism against Aboriginal Australians are bolstered by the erroneous assumption that inequalities are necessarily evidence of racism. For example, Dr Fiona Stanley has stated that: “Racism was endemic in Australia and was evident in the divergent outcomes for Indigenous people in areas like health care, education, justice and child protection.”

Get it? Inequalities affecting Aboriginal people can only be due to racism. I agree that racism should be addressed where it exists, but not at the expense of other factors that make a bigger contribution to inequality.

In recent times, Stan has said much that I fundamentally disagree with. For example, I disagree with this claim in 2016: “Of course racism is killing the Australian dream.”

Yet he also offers great intellect and insight when it comes to discussing Aboriginal matters. Given his prowess in Aboriginal affairs, he should not be dismissed.

Stan now declares: “Since the King’s coronation, I have seen people in the media lie and distort my words.” He deserves the opportunity to clarify what he said. Importantly, he had and still has ample opportunity, to clarify what he meant.

So, when he does speak, I and many others will be listening. And he would do well to state his case more objectively than in his closing comments on Q&A.