Doug PollardFooty trainer slandered by mayoral candidate (LINK)
July 27th 2008 00:14
Jeff Kennett, Hawthorn chairman
Ch 7 NEWS INTERVIEW WITH KEN CAMPAGNOLO TONIGHT
"The club felt that once this had been pointed out and you had this gentleman there who was obviously close to young men - massaging young men - it ran an unnecessary risk and that's why it decided it was best that he not perform those duties again," said Kennett.
"It's the same if you have a pedophile there as a masseur, right? And you might say the pedophile would do no damage, but once it was pointed out to you, you have a duty of care to those underage children not to put them in a situation of risk."
Wrong, Mr Kennett. For a start, Ken is bisexual, not, as the story states, gay. Bisexual invisibility rides again. And the old slur that homosexuality equates to paedophilia belongs back in the long-dead past, as does Mr Kennett.
Ken had worked in this capacity for many years for more than one club without the slightest hint of a problem, and his bisexuality was always known to the officials of the clubs. It was only after his sexuality was reported in the press that they acted to remove him, as the president of Bonnie Doon admitted to me in an interview.
For many years now Mr Kennett has been chairman of beyondblue, the anti-depression charity. It seeks to remove the stigma from depression so that people will not be ashamed to seek treatment.
One has to wonder if Mr Kennett was not so much interested in removing the stigma of depression as he was in removing the stigma of being Jeff Kennett, who is arguably responsible for the current lamentable state of education and public transport, and much of the rest of the public services of Victoria.
By stigmatising bisexuality as the equivalent of paedophilia Mr Kennett has expressed homophobia in it's purest form, slammed the closet door on thousands of vulnerable young people coming to terms with their sexuality, and contributed to the appalling youth suicide rate by effectively telling young gay men they're no better than paedophiles.
Gay bashers now have a champion, who can point to Mr Kennett and say "He says you're the same as kiddy-fiddlers."
Mr Kennett is considering standing for Mayor of Melbourne. He wouldn't be the first failed politician to try to revive his career by scapegoating an innocent minority and riding to power on the wave of blind prejudice he created.
Unfortunately the Jews are no longer available for this role, nor the Muslims, nor the blacks. The last minority it is acceptable to demonise in this way is the gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and intersex community.
Ken Campagnolo
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