I genuinely believe that a lot of the booing (from Hawthorn supporters) did stem from Goodes sliding into Gibson.
The continued booing over the longer term I think was due to the media making a huge deal out of it and telling the public that they shouldn't be allowed to do it. Turns out people don't like being told that they can't do something like that.
I booed Goodes at the time he slid into Gibson - it was a shit act late in the season before finals, on one of our most important and beloved players. I however didn't continue to boo him in any subsequent games though. Because when the media narrative became "the booing of Goodes is driven by racism" then you have to realise that regardless of whether or not it actually was, and whether or not it was for you, it's going to look like you're supporting that view by doing it.
Now I'm a big supporter of freedom of speech and expression, and I find the whole PC-culture thing quite often gets ridiculous. But sometimes you need to pick your battles. Your right to boo a particular bloke every time he gets the ball in a game regardless of what he's done in that or previous games needs to be weighed up against the chances that people around you think you're a racist. Or that Goodes and other Aboriginal people watching might genuinely believe that the booing is about race and that it might actually be having an impact on his/their mental health.
So my stance had been "If you feel compelled to join in the booing for what you honestly believe to be non-race motivated reason then that's your prerogative. Just don't act surprised when people think you're supporting racism."
The continued booing over the longer term I think was due to the media making a huge deal out of it and telling the public that they shouldn't be allowed to do it. Turns out people don't like being told that they can't do something like that.
I booed Goodes at the time he slid into Gibson - it was a shit act late in the season before finals, on one of our most important and beloved players. I however didn't continue to boo him in any subsequent games though. Because when the media narrative became "the booing of Goodes is driven by racism" then you have to realise that regardless of whether or not it actually was, and whether or not it was for you, it's going to look like you're supporting that view by doing it.
Now I'm a big supporter of freedom of speech and expression, and I find the whole PC-culture thing quite often gets ridiculous. But sometimes you need to pick your battles. Your right to boo a particular bloke every time he gets the ball in a game regardless of what he's done in that or previous games needs to be weighed up against the chances that people around you think you're a racist. Or that Goodes and other Aboriginal people watching might genuinely believe that the booing is about race and that it might actually be having an impact on his/their mental health.
So my stance had been "If you feel compelled to join in the booing for what you honestly believe to be non-race motivated reason then that's your prerogative. Just don't act surprised when people think you're supporting racism."

