The lawyer representing one of the Indigenous families involved in the racism case against the Hawthorn Football Club has questioned why coaches Alastair Clarkson and Chris Fagan have been allowed to return to their roles before an AFL investigation has concluded.
Clarkson, now the coach of North Melbourne, and Fagan, the coach of the Brisbane Lions, returned to work this week, having taken a leave of absence when allegations of racism and bullying from their time at Hawthorn between 2008-16 were first made public.
Back on deck: Alastair Clarkson has had his first official week as coach of North Melbourne.Credit:Simon Schluter
Fagan and Clarkson, having also engaged legal counsel, have strenuously denied the allegations, and Clarkson said this week there was greater context to the claims.
However, lawyer Michael Bradley, the managing partner of Marque Lawyers, representing “Amy” (a pseudonym), whose partner was drafted by the Hawks, has questioned why the league and the clubs allowed Fagan and Clarkson to return for pre-season training.
“Regarding Clarkson and Fagan, that’s a matter for the AFL and the clubs that employ them. Given the extreme gravity of the allegations and the risks that they imply, I’m not sure how those entities have satisfied themselves that ‘clearing’ them to return to work so quickly was appropriate, but we’re not privy to their internal processes,” Bradley told The Age.
The AFL has said this was a matter for the clubs. Clarkson this week stressed he was entitled to be considered innocent until proven guilty, and said he looked forward to giving his version of events in the AFL investigation before the four-person panel of Bernard Quinn KC, First Nations barristers Jacqualyn Turfrey and Tim Goodwin, and human rights barrister Julie Buxton.
“That’s a decision that has been made by the club and myself. At the minute, they are just allegations and we are going to defend ourselves pretty strongly in the investigation and, like anyone in this world, until the allegations are proven, you should be able to get on and lead your life,” Clarkson said.
Amy, allegedly pressured to terminate her pregnancy by Hawthorn coaching staff, will not participate in the AFL’s investigation due to safety concerns.
Under the league’s terms of reference issued by Gordon Legal partner James Naughton, the AFL says “the investigation should ensure, to the full extent possible, that it is conducted in a culturally safe, secure and respectful manner for First Nations participants. The investigation should limit, to the fullest extent possible, harm caused to First Nations participants as a result of the investigation process.”
The AFL says the investigation it has launched is the most stringent it can do under its own laws, but its “process doesn’t stop any impacted person from taking separate legal action or seeking redress in another forum or jurisdiction”. The families, however, maintain it could have been more independent.
Chris Fagan has also officially returned to work as Lions coach, as he seeks to clear his name in an AFL investigation.Credit:Getty Images
Other options for Amy include taking her case to the Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission, or even to the National Sports Tribunal, which says it’s ready to handle such a complex case. There is also the option of heading to court, seeking damages.
“We are considering our client’s rights and options, and she’ll decide what she wants to do in her own time. I’m not being cute about this, we’re still working on it. It’s still less than a month since we were engaged, and our first priority has been protecting our client’s safety and wellbeing,” Bradley said.
In a statement released by Bradley this week, Amy said she had been traumatised by the review, and said she should have spoken up earlier, having only done so when the Hawks commissioned their own internal report, led by former Richmond player Phil Egan, in the wake of allegations of racism made by premiership player Cyril Rioli and his wife.
In her artwork titled The Brooms Are Coming Out, in which Amy recounts her allegations against Hawthorn, she writes the case involves “reproductive coercion”, “bullying”, “corruption” and “intimidation”.
Amy, one of the five First Nations families involved in the Hawthorn racism case, has expressed her feelings through her artwork: The Brooms are Coming Out.Credit:“Amy”
Bradley and Amy, in their statement released on Wednesday, also took aim at Hawks president Jeff Kennett, for his recent remarks that the racism storm was “not a crisis” but “a bump along the road”.
“The prioritising of the AFL brand over the experiences of the First Nations players and families replicates the patterns of coercive control of vulnerable people revealed by the Egan review,” the statement said.
The Age has been told the remaining four families who also took part in the Hawks’ review are still reluctant about taking part in the league investigation.
The deadline for required documents to be presented to the four-person panel passed on Friday, while the deadline for “initial written or otherwise communicated statements” is next Friday.
Should any of the families participate, the AFL says they can “choose where and when they would like their interview conducted, and which panel member will be conducting it”.
The terms of reference say a “culturally trained trauma practitioners, psychologists and other professionals (can) provide care for First Nations participants during the investigation process”.
The final submissions on matters “pertinent to the terms of reference” is December 6, with the league keen for a resolution by Christmas – a timeline Bradley says is “wholly unrealistic and places unacceptable pressure on First Nations players and their families, many of whom are dealing with severe trauma”.
