The Melbourne Storm’s recent and surprising decision to review the club’s pre-game homecoming ceremonies has sparked a fierce reaction on social media.
NRL heavyweights have made the decision to scale back the ceremonies, confirming the news to the Herald of the sun on Sunday.
The club then clarified their decision on Sunday afternoon, saying they were not “abandoning” the ceremony but would review when it would take place.
“Melbourne Storm is not ‘abandoning’ its Welcome to Country or Thank Yous as recent media has suggested,” the statement read. “We will continue these recognitions in culturally significant celebrations.”
“The strength and success of our Club is based on many cultures and communities, and our commitment to them has helped us reflect the different points of view on how to best support and represent each group.”
This year’s junior premiers added: ‘We will continue to speak to these communities and seek their views to find the most appropriate and respectful way to recognize and celebrate culture, including the best way to recognize First Nations.
The NRL heavyweight’s recent announcement to review regular homecoming ceremonies has caused a social media storm.
Melbourne Storm confirmed they will still hold the ceremony during the Indigenous Round
“The Club will continue to support First Nations community groups and organisations, as it has done for many years, delivering programs and initiatives that promote positive outcomes in health, wellbeing and education.”
It is understood the club will continue to hold homecoming ceremonies during events of cultural significance, including the NRL Indigenous round.
The news sparked a huge response online, with many fans taking to social media to comment on the issue.
‘Good for the storm. End divisive ceremonies,’ one X user posted.
‘Great success! “Give the money saved to the grassroots football clubs,” responded another.
‘Fantastic news. The world is waking up,” posted a third.
“It’s about time, why do we have to be welcomed in our own country?” asked another.
Others were unhappy with the NRL powerhouse’s decision.
Brendan Kerin, cultural educator for Sydney’s Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council, gave a resounding welcome to country in the AFL which he said was not for white people.
“Another reason not to renew my Storm membership,” one X user posted.
Indigenous rapper Briggs posted: ‘Look, the cost of living means cultural recognition just isn’t viable in this economy. Cultural inclusion has a price. Storm could do it if she wanted to; “If anyone knows how to enforce a salary cap, it’s them.”
He would later follow up with another post on Facebook.
“Not surprising and disappointing,” Briggs wrote. ‘What is your identity @Storm? I couldn’t care less about the pageantry, but the thin veil of respect finally disappeared.
‘We revealed that a co-owner donated $175,000 to the NO campaign. What value does a welcome have when these are the people behind the decisions and identity of the club?
The social media storm comes just weeks after the Juru people of northern Queensland voted to ban welcome-to-country ceremonies on their land.
“The seniors have had enough,” said Randall Ross, a spokesperson on 4BC Mornings with Bill McDonald.
“It’s being abused and they want to put an end to it.”
Part of the renewed attention to the ceremony comes courtesy of its prominence before major sporting events, and particularly the Giants vs. Lions semi-final in Sydney in September, where Aboriginal elder Brendan Kerin said they were “not going to cater to the whites.” .
“It’s a ceremony we’ve been celebrating for 250,000 years BC, and BC means Before Cook,” he told the crowd, referring to Captain James Cook’s arrival in Australia in 1770, before European settlement.
Kerin said the practice was not a welcome to Australia, but that “within Australia we have many Aboriginal lands, and we refer to our lands as ‘Country’, so it is always a welcome to the lands they have gathered on.” “.
“Before colonization, you could get into a lot of trouble for walking on someone else’s land and not being welcome on that land,” the Marrawarra and Barkindji man said.