Olsen Filipaina
-
I didn't even recognise his name but I read the article. While I know racism is really bad, I've never thought about it too much apart from trying to set a bit of an example around mates in not tolerating it at all. Reading the brief article from his book, this bit struck me as I had never though of why it feels so bad to be racially taunted.
Call me short or fat or dumb or ugly — I can deal with that. But insult my colour or my people and you are insulting my parents, my friends, my children, my grandparents and all those that came before them. If you were to insult a white person’s mother, they would go crazy on you
I always assumed it would feel more personal to be racially insulted but I think I am quite wrong. The above makes so much sense.
That was a good (but saddening) read
-
On the rare occasions that rugby league was front and centre in the early 80s, loved Olsen. We'd spend a few days at my primary school impersonating his toe hacker goal kicking, as that was the only time we had ever seen that as all rugby union kickers were round the corner by our lifetimes.
Also his bump offs. For a back, were awesome.
And his name, probably the first exotic sounding Polynesian name we had come accross in my mostly mono-cultural with a bit of bi-culture corner of 1980s NZ.
Apparently he always turned it on for the Kiwis but struggled a bit over in Sydney club league, played a fair bit of reserve grade while still NZ's first choice stand-off. Not that NSWRL was televised in ZN at that time, so all learnt in hindsight.
-
I remember watching him play for the Kiwis. There have been a few articles about Filipaina in the last few years that have highlighted the difficult life he has had.
For example:
-
-
@MN5 said in Olsen Filipaina:
O is for Olsen, not Awesome.
It always cracked me up that David Tua didn't seem bothered that the whole of New Zealand thought he'd got this wrong when he actually hadn't.
Fark that is hilarious. The jokes on all of us! Cue a new t-shirt
-
@MN5 said in Olsen Filipaina:
O is for Olsen, not Awesome.
It always cracked me up that David Tua didn't seem bothered that the whole of New Zealand thought he'd got this wrong when he actually hadn't.
Except for trying to use a vowel... but yeah @canefan a T-shirt would be Olsen
