Nils von Kalm writes on how the Indigenous Hawthorn AFL players and their partners who have made allegations of mistreatment expose a rotten culture in Australian society
Apart from the incomprehensible ugliness of the racism allegations that we’ve seen this week, those allegations have also exposed again the very foundation of how our society is set up.
The most powerful elements of our culture have a ‘whatever-it-takes’ attitude to success, where human dignity is discarded at the altar of profit.
This is the fruit of a culture that sits in what Richard Rohr calls the first half of life. The first half of life is not necessarily a chronological stage; it is a state of being where life is all about success and winning. It is the adolescent stage that everyone needs to go through but which we must eventually grow out of if we are to mature.
We have the opportunity to step into the second half of life when we go through a crisis and question what our life is about. It might be a divorce, a job loss, burnout or a death of a loved one. The second half of life is when we realise that life is not about us, that we are not in control, and that we are going to die one day. It is about the search for something deeper, for what life is really about. We will generally not step into the second half of life in our culture unless we experience some sort of crisis. We are just too satiated and comfortable.
The Hawthorn situation is a symptom of what you see when a society is founded on economic growth at all costs when our national well-being is measured in terms of GDP. It is the heart of the flaw of market capitalism.
2,000 years ago, it was said that life does not consist in the abundance of possessions, and the question was raised as to what it will profit you if you gain the whole world but lose who you really are. These questions are more relevant today than ever.
The Hawthorn bombshell this week presents an opportunity for heartfelt change in a part of our culture. The fact that it’s been front-page news here is a healthy sign. How it’s dealt with from here will reflect whether our society is ready to face our shadow and take a step into the second half of life.
Nils von Kalm is an award-winning freelance writer on personal development, and social and political issues. He has appeared in The Sunday Age and Sojourners (US-based faith and social justice magazine).
Image: Hawthorn supporters at the MCG / Tom Reynolds