Nigel the crazy 19-year-old Curtin University student

‘Complain and we’ll get it taken down’
Chalpat Sonti
WA Today
September 24, 2009

Australia’s race discrimination commissioner says he is confident YouTube, MySpace and Facebook will remove references about a fictional Aboriginal character – but he needs public complaints before he will approach the internet giants.

Graeme Innes was referring to the furore that erupted over the “Nigel the Crazy Noonga” website [www.crazynoonga.com] created by a 19-year-old Curtin University student.

The site featured audio excerpts of a character who prank calls businesses using a fake Aboriginal accent.

It was shut down after protests from the Aboriginal community and a complaint to police, but excerpts can still be found on US-based social networking and video sites YouTube, MySpace and Facebook [“Sadly Nigel can’t read or write so this group was established on his behalf after he threatened to quote, “Knock me on my hole” if I didn’t” — and ‘excerpts’ can be found all over the place].

Mr Innes told WAtoday.com.au the Australian Human Rights Commission had “quite a deal of success” getting such material removed from the sites in the past, but he needed to receive complaints from the public before he could act.

Such complaints could be made at the commission’s website.

“Obviously this sort of material has a very negative impact on any community that’s vilified in this way,” Mr Innes said.

“It’s not funny, it’s not humurous [sic], it’s just having a go at Australian society.

“To vilify someone on the basis of their race doesn’t just damage that group, it damages society as a whole.”

‘Crazy Noonga’ website sparks racism outrage
Fran Rimrod
WA Today
September 24, 2009 – 2:19PM

A website set up by a Perth student about a fictional Aboriginal character has been shut down and is being investigated by police amid racism claims.

The website, which Radio 6PR reports was created by a 19-year-old Curtin University student, features audio excerpts of a character called “Nigel the crazy Noonga”, who prank calls businesses and fast-food outlets with a fake Aboriginal accent.

The portrayal of negative Aboriginal stereotypes has sparked outrage from the Aboriginal community…

About @ndy

I live in Melbourne, Australia. I like anarchy. I don't like nazis. I enjoy eating pizza and drinking beer. I barrack for the greatest football team on Earth: Collingwood Magpies. The 2024 premiership's a cakewalk for the good old Collingwood.
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16 Responses to Nigel the crazy 19-year-old Curtin University student

  1. Lawrence says:

    there is public outcry about this because some people are offended, yet the tax-payer funded television network allows chris [lilley] to infer that tongans are stupid and violent and parodise their accent? do you not see the flaw in this act of censorship?

  2. @ndy says:

    No.

    For one, I’m not sure what’s happening to the student in question: I don’t know if the closure of the site was his decision, or if it was brought about through a court order; I don’t know if he faces any charges — criminal or civil. Presumably, time will tell.

    As for Chris Lilley, if any Tongan felt offended by his portrayal of Jonah Takalua in Summer Heights High, they have recourse under law to bring a complaint against Lilley, the ABC, or producers. Afaik, none have.

  3. @ndy says:

    …and you can still have a laff riot on YouTube:

    http://www.youtube.com/user/Crazynoonga

  4. inglourious basterd says:

    @ndy, looks like YouTube have shut down the Crazy Noonga site.

    Chris Lilley’s clever satire was based on dopy adolescent male behaviour and on sending up racial stereotyping, not on racism. If you actually looked closely Lawrence, you’d have seen Pacific Islander actors taking part, which wouldn’t have happened if Lilley were racist.

  5. Don says:

    Well well. You turn up in interesting places, young Lawrence.

  6. @ndy says:

    inglourious basterd,

    Works fine for me…?

  7. inglourious basterd says:

    Didn’t realise it was an audio file, not a video…ah well no doubt it’ll be gone soon.

  8. @ndy says:

    I suppose… if it were corporate copyright infringement, it would’ve been gone last week.

  9. Alex says:

    Comparing Crazy Noonga to Summer Heights High?

    “sat⋅ire  [sat-ahyuhr] Show IPA
    –noun
    1. the use of irony, sarcasm, ridicule, or the like, in exposing, denouncing, or deriding vice, folly, etc.

    (Satire, lampoon) refer to literary forms in which vices or follies are ridiculed.

    (Satire), the general term, often emphasizes the weakness more than the weak person, and usually implies moral judgment and corrective purpose…”

  10. Derek says:

    The people for censoring the crazy noonga site ought to chill the hell out. In this supposed day of freedom of speech, how can you shutdown a meagre send up of a stereotype. The character is fictional. If you want to take offense to something like this then you are probably a perpetual searcher for scapegoats to take the attention off your petty existence. There are humorous takes on stereotypes of every race. Let everyone make a bit of fun of each other and maybe some will be humbled off their high-horse pulling the censorship bandwagon. You politicians talk about the ideal of freedom of speech. Start exercising your ideals instead of holding them to ransom.

  11. caleb says:

    but you see a lot of us keep criticising each other and being racist to each other and freedom of speech all hes doing is mucking around they thought 5 jacksons its racist cos it was all white people i hate the rules how racist everyone thinks everyone is racist woopy doo da get over it and they say stuff to us we dont get offended and we leave it but when some white guy comes along and does same thing its like its worse really bad

  12. johannes says:

    alright slu+s, speaking of ‘high horses’ i happen to know this universtiy student and hes not on a high horse… Hes unpopular… Maybe if you all werent so inferiororitaly scared of his form of humour he could actually have some mates…

    regards, Joel Dimetrios

  13. nick says:

    s r th lwst f th lw, thy stl nd bsh nd rp, f ws pm wld mk t lw tht ll bs wll be thrwn n prsn fr lf whr thy blng, d prbbly strm th cmr ftg nln s y cn wtch thm fght vr smks r jms s thy cll thm. Nm fr pm!

  14. Derek, who is pissed off. says:

    The above Derek wasn’t me, or one of my retinue of servants or family members. The Great and Venerable House of Derek (Masters of Encyclopedias Encarta, Britannica and Other Dominions) wish to disassociate the above Derek’s opinions from our ancestral line, and we have taken immediate steps to involve our lawyers in efforts to have the name of this pretender to our noble birthright compulsorily acquired.

  15. Derek, who is feeling mischievous. says:

    Any university whose students use words like “inferiororitaly” should be given our sympathies. The meritocracy has obviously broken down further than we’d first feared.

    Anyway Joel, in what way does a reasonable challenge of this guy on the grounds of taste and racism betray us as feeling “inferiororital” to the chap in question. Seems like he’d have thousands more potential friends to choose from if he weren’t a racist. Tends to cut down the friend-making opportunities of the average young man, immediately excluding large portions of the population.

  16. Q Bristow-Smith says:

    If you don’t like it, don’t go looking for it. I am forced to watch Leftie’s idea of funny, the ABC using racist Muslim, transgenders and Aborigines I don’t think that is funny. Hang on what about my feeling must go ring up the human rights right now.

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