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[This letter refers to the appearance of gay rugby union team the Sydney Convicts on the NRL Footy Show following the show’s May 7 skit about a ‘defective’ gay player.] In MCV’s sister publication SX (issue 437) Sydney Convicts president Charlie Wynn said “the Convicts were going on for one reason only: to portray a positive image of gay men on the Footy Show.” So why did the Convicts comment on the May 7 skit? Were they representing the gay community? Their media release made no mention of the skit or that they would comment on it. My complaint against the Nine Network Australia Pty Ltd (the respondent) was taken by me as a single complainant and not on the behalf of homosexual men. As with my previous substantiated complaint against Radio 2UE, John Laws and Steve Price, I was also seeking a remedy of "public interest" dimensions so the gay community could benefit. If my complaint against Channel 9 was successful, any recompense I received would go to a needy charity within the gay community. The Convicts have impinged upon my delivering a remedy of "public interest" dimension for the gay community because the Nine Network will now say at my conciliation hearing [that] a remedy has been delivered by the appearance of the Convicts gay rugby team on the Footy Show. I am the complainant in this matter and not the Convicts gay rugby football team. I question the timing and the reasons for the Convicts deciding to appear on the Footy Show while my complaint was still under investigation by the NSW Anti-Discrimination Board. I also question why the Convicts would comment on the May 7 skit when their media release made no mention of it. I believe this was done for one purpose and one purpose only: to scuttle me, because in the eyes of the Convicts I don't represent this community. The Convicts have not caused any damage to my long-term goals of removing discrimination and vilification against gay men. They have hurt the gay community because the remedies addressing unlawful homosexual vilification have been scuttled by their reckless and interfering shenanigans. The next time a gay man is vilified or discriminated against for his difference he should rightly ask the Convicts football team whether they condone the vilification of homosexual men. Gary Burns Woollahra via email
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