Basketballer Liz Cambage has slammed the Australian Olympic Committee for its lack of POC athletes in a promotional shoot for the Tokyo Olympics.
Cambage, who plays in the Las Vegas Aces in the WNBA, and national Australian basketball team the Opals, was appalled at the lack of POC in two photos, one from the Australian Olympic team, and the other from underwear brand, Jockey.
“I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a million times, HOW AM I MEANT TO REPRESENT A COUNTRY THAT DOESNT EVEN REPRESENT ME. #whitewashedaustralia,” she wrote on her Instastory.
View this post on Instagram
Cambage also pointed to the Australian Olympic Team’s official shoot on their Instagram page. “Fake tan doesn’t equal diversity,” she wrote.
“Y’all really do anything to remove POCs from the forefront when it’s black athletes leading the pack,” she said.
“Until I see y’all doin more @ausolympicteam imma sit this one out.”
The only POC in the Olympic shoot was Maurice Longbottom, who was wearing an Olympic shirt featuring Aboriginal artwork designed by Yuggera man Paul Fleming, a boxer who represented Australia at the 2008 Olympics.
“One token POC in a photo is not good enough,” she said. “It’s sad, the whitewashing is sad. Your black athletes lead you everywhere. Indigenous athletes are some of the best athletes we have. An y’all don’t use them at all.”
She also re-posted to her Instastory support from Aussie WOC [Women of Colour].
“We stand with Liz Cambage. Whiteness is not diversity, Australia.”
In a public response to the backlash, the Australian Olympic Committee acknowledged Cambage’s comments, apologised and said the Jockey photo shoot “should have better reflected the rich diversity of athletes who represent Australia at the Olympic Games.”
“We proudly defend our track record on diversity and there will be further photoshoots that reflect our broad diversity of athletes,” the statement continued.
The International Olympics Committee have also come under fire recently for banning the wearing of BLM Merchandise, citing reasons that it would “inappropriate to demonstrate or express their views on the field of play”.
Moreover, it’s not the first time Cambage has taken issue with race in Australia, whereby last year she called out “allies” in the George Floyd protests, urging people to actually show up the BLM protests and not just post about it on social media.
As expected, the major sporting event will take up much of the news cycle, but it remains to be seen if it will be for the right reasons.
You can read more about this topic over at the Fashion & Beauty Observer.
