As football fans gear up for the AFL's Indigenous Round, this year marks the 20th anniversary of one footballer's courageous stance in the face of racial abuse.
Dr Gary Osmond from The University of Queensland is co-curator of the exhibition
Black and Proud: A stand against racism, which reflects on the impact of footballer Nicky Winmar's personal statement against racial taunts during a memorable 1993 Collingwood-St Kilda game.
At the conclusion of the game, he turned to Collingwood fans, raised his St Kilda jumper, pointed at his stomach and said "I'm black and I'm proud to be black", in response to racial taunts.
Dr Osmond, a senior lecturer in sports history at UQ's School of Human Movement Studies, and co-curator Dr Matthew Klugman of Victoria University, have collaborated on this project.
"We aim to highlight the racial vilification to which Indigenous players were routinely subjected," Dr Osmond said.
"The 1993 image of Winmar is one of the most important Australian photographs of recent decades.
"It drew a line in the sand and forced the AFL to address the issue of racial vilification."
Dr Osmond and Dr Klugman are writing a book on the circumstances around Mr Winmar's "significant and courageous" act, and its long-lasting effects.
"The AFL introduced its Racial and Religious Vilification Code in 1995 and other sporting codes later emulated it," Dr Osmond said.
"It all began with Winmar's gesture.
"The importance of the image can be seen through its continuing cultural resonance and reproduction in many spaces, from books to galleries, posters to graffiti."
The exhibition features never-before-seen images of Mr Winmar before and after his momentous gesture, and images and objects demonstrating the continuing relevance of the theme today.
The Black and Proud: A stand against racism exhibition runs until the end of the year at the National Sports Museum at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
The museum opens daily from 10am to 5pm.
Contact: Kirsten O'Leary, Communications and Media, UQ Faculty of Health Science, +61 7 3346 4713 or k.rogan@uq.edu.au
