KATE EMERY: Taking action against homophobia should be more than just lip service for AFL 

Under ordinary circumstances it wouldn’t exactly be news: Grandad is a bit homophobic.

Unfortunately, the grandad in question is US rapper Snoop Dogg, which is why his comments about being “scared” when he took his grandkids to a Pixar movie is news and not just an embarrassing story for his family.

Snoop, who has recently completed the trajectory from influential musician to nostalgia act, apparently did not appreciate a montage in the Pixar film Lightyear that shows two women raising a child.

“They’re like, ‘She had a baby — with another woman,’” Snoop said in a podcast interview. “‘Papa Snoop? How she have a baby with a woman? She’s a woman!’… I didn’t come in for this s..t. I just came to watch the goddamn movie.’

“I’m like, scared to go to the movies. Y’all throwing me in the middle of sh.t that I don’t have an answer for.”

For an alleged musical genius this is pretty dumb.

For one thing, a question about why a kid has two mums ranks incredibly low on the list of tough questions posed by the average kid. Get back to me when you’ve been asked loudly and in public to explain what makes the sky blue, how the universe was formed or why that man standing right next to us is “so fat, Mum?”

For another, it’s incredibly easy to answer and, frankly, less embarrassing than explaining how babies get born the “natural” way, while in a crowded cinema.

Snoop wasn’t really “scared” of the film or stumped by the question, of course.

He was delivering — if you’ll forgive the unavoidable pun — a dog-whistle of sorts. For all that Snoop Dogg has publicly distanced himself from his rich history of homophobia and misogyny, this is the slow wink that lets his audience know he hasn’t changed that much.

It’s deeply unfortunate that this is happening just as Snoop prepares to perform at this year’s AFL Grand Final and at a time when homophobia in the league is in the spotlight.

Most recently Adelaide’s Izak Rankine was banned for four weeks for using a homophobic slur towards a Collingwood opponent. The fact that the ban was four weeks — not five — crucially left the door open to Rankine playing in this year’s grand final.

On Wednesday, former West Coast Eagle Mitch Brown made history by becoming the first-ever AFL player to come out publicly as bisexual — a ballsy decision that’s great for the league and for other LGBTQI players and fans. But Brown’s comments about his experience also reflects the reality of homophobia in the AFL.

“In the locker room and in the spas, the chats were all geared around ‘who did everyone pick up on the weekend’? Or, you know, ‘she’s pretty hot’,” he said. “It was never once an opportunity to speak openly or explore your feelings or questions in a safe way.”

“I remember two people having a conversation around how they would feel having a shower next to a gay man and one of the players said ‘I’d rather be in a cage full of lions than have a shower next to a gay man’.”

AFL officials are great at saying the right things when homophobia publicly rears its head: It’s unacceptable! It won’t be tolerated! No place for it in today’s game!

But those words aren’t always backed up by action, like bans that hit where it hurts or opting against a grand final entertainment act who claims to be terrified of a couple of animated mums.

And as every parent — or grandparent — learns sooner or later, it’s what you do, not what you say, that shows people what’s really important.