McGuire is an influential figure in Australian radio, TV and sport.
"Eddie McGuire has been accused of peddling "disgusting" stereotypes over a jibe he made about Sydney's western suburbs during his breakfast show.
McGuire, who is president of Collingwood AFL club, was taunting Greater Western Sydney Giants coach Kevin Sheedy when he dismissed the ethnically diverse part of the city as "land of the falafel".
He said any recruits signing to the Giants would soon get tired of living there. "I've just a put a team together of your 17-year-olds who'll be sick of living up in the land of the falafel in western Sydney playing in front of a 12,000-seat stadium that's still not put up," McGuire said.
The jibe, although meant jest, has angered listeners. Mazhar Hadid, a councillor for the Sydney west suburb of Liverpool, described the comment as "completely inappropriate".
"Eddie McGuire is supposed to be a very respectable person but this comment is just insulting to the residents of the western suburbs," he told the Sydney Morning Herald.
An official from Greater Western Sydney Giants said the comment was "disgusting" and sent the wrong message.
Kevin Dunn, an academic at University of Western Sydney and expert on racism in Australia, said: "It's a flippant remark and a silly stereotype. It just betrays an ignorance.”
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5 comments:
I think "disgusting" is the right word to use, it's just in the wrong context. It should be used to describe the felafel itself. After all, the felafel is reaaly a food that people HAVE to eat, not WANT to eat.
The only people who seem to disagree with him are a local Islamic perpetual victim and a news reporter trying to be a sensationalist.
Locals have invited Eddie to come by and taste their falafels, the best in town in full knowledge that he was not slighting them but jesting as a football rival.
Although McGuire no longer lives where he was raised he knows that the conditions on the ground are the same. He grew up in the school of hard knocks and has done well for himself.
He is an easy figure to dismiss and could do more to influence kids but there are serious racial issues in the areas that he is making light of as a football rival.
The true sadness is that many of the kids that grow up in the western suburbs of Sydney have a greater allegiance to bin-Laden than to the ARL or AFL. Many swear allegiance to Islam before the Australian constitution as first or second born generation Australians.
It is time to drop the facade and ask all to declare to be Australians first. If that is too difficult then I am sure that the there will be no shortage of funds to relocate dissidents to a country of their choice.
To those that don’t wish to be true Australians the party is drawing to a close.
-btm
Obviously, in Australia, like in Britain and the US, far too many people have much too much to say. It's an attractive system to those who enjoy whining, but history shows, eventually, it always fails.
Falafel is incredible. I eat it all the time and love it. You've obviously never had good falafel before.
Here in NYC, falafel is basically jewish pizza.
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