I want to establish something first. I really hate talking about Ezra Mam purely for the fact that the subject has been done to death. And whilst I certainly don’t support his off-season actions, at the end of the day, that was eight months ago. Both the courts and the NRL have made their decisions, and whether or not you agree with those decisions, it’s time that we all moved on from that conversation.
But what came out yesterday rubbed me the wrong way. The Sydney Morning Herald reported that Mam was under the impression he was recently being booed because he took a stance against racism post monkey-gate, stating “I’m not afraid to stand up for myself and my people, and people who look like me” and that “I’ll keep doing that as long as I want, and if that means I get booed, I get booed.”
There is no way on gods green earth that Ezra Mam thought he was being booed because he took a stance against racism. If he genuinely thinks that then there’s a 100% chance his mother and father are related. But of course, he doesn’t think that, and what he’s trying to do is bring the race card into it and I’m not buying it. Those who value straight talk see right through it and it’s an insult to fans intelligence. If fans were booing you because of your stance against racism than they would’ve done that last year you crackhead.
All that it does is damage the genuine fight against racism in the game and the steps the NRL is trying to take to promote the indigenous culture. Crying wolf means that when the next incident arises, fans are going to question it, and this muddying of the waters will only increase scepticism.
I’m not asking Ezra Mam to come out and make grand apologies for what happened last year. He’s already done that, and we need to move on. But when asked about your thoughts on why fans are booing you, at least show some accountability, take the heat, and try to win back some respect. Playing the race card and trying to paint yourself as a martyr is weak and insulting, and now you’re only going to cop it more because you’ve painted yourself as an even bigger fuckwit.
