‘The viral rise of Stan Grant: why diplomacy won’t be enough for our people‘, New Matilda, 26 February 2016
The reaction to [Grant’s speech], the thought that maybe Australians are “better than this” … gives strength to many blackfellas who are constantly beaten down and belittled, who unlike Grant, are not celebrated by white Australia, but instead demonised for their truth and advocacy.
But the height of the fever-pitch around Grant, the numerous platitudes, the push for Grant to now consider a political career off the back of a couple of speeches, says more about the state of the nation than anything he has uttered so far.
Grant’s speech was great, but it was his eloquence, his position as an award-winning journalist, and his non-threatening diplomacy, that laid the foundation for this overwhelming enthusiasm from white Australia …
It is not Grant’s fault – his advocacy is welcome and his eloquence is an asset. But his reception at the expense of other ignored black voices says more about the nature of Australian racism than any speech he has delivered so far.
Resources on Stan Grant’s speech and the reaction to it.
