National Indigenous Television
Drew Sheldrick
23 OCT 2015
Australian sport hasn't proven itself to be a bastion of racial or social harmony, especially of late. So one can only imagine the anxiety Casey Conway felt moving from Central Queensland to Sydney to play in the National Rugby League (NRL) straight out of high school.
Not only was he a small-town Aboriginal teen thrust into the spotlight in a new city, but he was leading what he calls a "double life", exploring his sexual identity in Sydney’s gay scene while keeping his relationships private from his teammates.
A Barada man, Conway grew up one of five boys in the small town of Bluff, a couple of hours west of Rockhampton. He played football from the age of six and was educated at St Brendan's College in Yeppoon – a boarding school with a specialised rugby league program well-known for producing potential NRL players. It was here he was scouted for his big break with the Sydney Roosters.
Joining the team's Jersey Flegg outfit (now known as the NRL's National Youth Competition/Holden Cup) in 2003, he was still unsure about his sexuality, before eventually admitting to club officials that he was gay.
"I was up-and-coming, so they were cautious about going about it the right way," he explained.
"They wanted to make sure I was looking after myself and accessing the support that I needed, and they were concerned about the club's image."
Despite discussing his sexuality with club management, Conway said he remained uncomfortable about the prospect of revealing he was gay to his teammates as he struggled to reconcile his rural upbringing with his new life in Sydney.
'I was doing that undercover and it finally came to a point where I had to start accepting it.'
"I was out-and-about on the [gay] scene and meeting people. I was doing that undercover and it finally came to a point where I had to start accepting it. I wanted more than what I was having," he said.
If Conway was expecting a less rigid environment in which to express himself outside the world of football, he soon discovered he’d have to navigate other forms of ignorance from within the gay community.
"There was a lot of casual racism. People would say things like, 'You're hot for an Aboriginal guy' or 'I've never been with a black guy'. I'd think, 'You know that’s not a compliment?'."
Traversing worlds as a member of both racial and sexual minorities proved to be both a minefield and a unique insight into the discrimination faced by both communities.
*******
"Fear Eats the Soul"
No comments:
Post a Comment
Comments may be moderated and will appear within 12 hours if approved.