Australian netball’s governing body is investigating online comments that may have breached the sport’s code of conduct, after New South Wales Swifts player Samantha Wallace-Joseph posted anti-transgender sentiment on her Instagram account.
Netball Australia and Super Netball released a joint statement on Tuesday confirming they were looking into the situation.
“Netball Australia and the Suncorp Super Netball League are committed to embracing diversity and ensuring the sport is welcoming and safe for everyone who wants to participate, including members of the LGBTIQA+ community,” the statement said.
“The Suncorp Super Netball League is closely working with the NSW Swifts in relation to the sport’s Code of Conduct.”
Wallace-Joseph came under fire after reposting an Instagram tile of Joe Biden highlighting March 31 - Easter Sunday - as International Transgender Day Of Visibility.
“The disrespect is crazy. Don’t play with GOD,” Wallace-Joseph wrote over the slide in a story that has since been deleted.
International Transgender Day Of Visibility has been celebrated on March 31 since 2009, whereas the date of Easter Sunday is determined using an astronomical calculation and changes each year.
The Swifts released a statement on Monday saying Wallace-Joseph’s social media activity had “caused understandable hurt to members of the transgender community” and the club did not share her views.
