A young Adelaide mother of two shared the embarrassing comment a chemist made to her when she went to buy her insulin prescription.
Adelaide resident Chelsea said the pharmacist told her “it must be 1/16 or something” because she didn’t seem Aboriginal enough when she applied for a grant for her medication under the Closing the Gap scheme.
Chelsea, whose father is Aboriginal, said she was surprised that “in 2024 we are still making comments about the color of people’s skin.”
Pharmacists receive a government co-payment under the scheme which reduces the cost of medicines included in the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme for Indigenous Australians.
“I give my script to the pharmacist, to the chemist, and he asks me if I’m sure I’m doing CTG,” she said in a now-viral TikTok video this week.
‘I didn’t think much about it. The next minute he comes up to me, gives me my insurance and says, well, you must have 1/16 or something.
“I say ‘Excuse me?’ and he says ‘well, you know, you have to be Aboriginal to do the CTG, so you have to be 1/16’ and I just said ‘oh’ and then I said, ‘It’s not like matter, but my dad is indigenous.
Chelsea said the pharmacist responded, “Well, I didn’t notice it when I looked at you.”
Chelsea, an Adelaide mother, said in a now-viral TikTok video that a chemist told her she had to be ‘1/16’ because she didn’t look Aboriginal enough to receive a PBS co-pay.
‘So it’s 2024 and we’re still making comments to people about the color of their skin? Great, great, great.’
The Australians were stunned by the chemist’s audacity.
“What a weird thing to say to a stranger,” one person commented.
‘I had to have a blood test during pregnancy and I found out I was Aboriginal. The woman crossed it out and told me ‘you don’t look indigenous,’ a second shared.
“I was very offended.”
“The way racism is so casual and widespread in Australia is crazy,” said a third.
Others shared their own experiences in the comments.
“My older brother and dad are pretty dark, but I don’t have that much dark skin,” said one commenter.
“I’m still pretty tanned, but not as tanned as they are.”
“I looked like my non-Aboriginal family members. I have blonde hair and my brother is tan and has dark, wavy hair,” said another.