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The Aboriginal Medical Service responds to RSL trouble-makers

The Aboriginal Medical Service Chief Executive Officer, Dr Naomi Mayers, expressed her absolute outrage at comments in the Sydney Morning Herald attributed to RSL head Bill Crews in a Media Statement in April 2007.

"He calls us"they", he thinks he can tell us where we can march and where we can't and whether or not we can have our own memorial service"

I ask him point blank "What does he think our people fought for?""Was it not to defend this country's liberty, the rights of its citizens and to protect people in other countries from the despicable racist crimes of monsters like Adolf Hitler?"

If the RSL is logically consistent, it should support our right to honour our Aboriginal service men and women in the ways that we consider to be appropriate. It should certainly not place itself on dangerous ground and seek to order us around!

"My own uncle fought for this country but was refused entry to RSL clubs as were most Aboriginal people in the Defence forces." "That is a shameful fact of RSL history and it should be exposed."

"We shall have our own march, we shall not be stuck at the end of the Anzac Day parade as second class citizens." If the RSL wants to take us on over this, then hear me clearly,we are ready."

Dr Mayers was so incensed by Bill Crews' offensive statements that she has heralded a boycott of the Redfern RSL by the Redfern Aboriginal community.

"Once we get going we mean business and I can tell you the Redfern RSL would go bankrupt without us"