Israel Folau is taking Rugby Australia to the Federal Court, after his contract with the national rugby team was terminated in May over an Instagram post which warned that ‘hell awaits’ drunks, homosexuals, atheists and others. Launching the proceedings, Folau said that no Australian of any faith should be fired for practising their religion. Initial court filings revealed that he is seeking up to AUS$10 million in damages for unlawful religious discrimination.
The case has already been mired in controversy after Folau attempted to raise AUS$3 million to fund his litigation through a campaign on the GoFundMe website. Many questioned whether it was morally justifiable for the rugby star to ask for money from the public to pursue a multi-million dollar payday, and close to 100,000 people signed a petition calling for GoFundMe to shut down the page of a ‘homophobic bigot’. Folau’s crowdfunding page raised close to AUS$760,000 in its opening weekend, but in a stunning move GoFundMe announced that it was pulling the page and would be issuing full refunds to all donors.
GoFundMe sought to justify their decision on the basis that they do not tolerate ‘the promotion of discrimination or exclusion’, adding that ‘fostering an environment of inclusively’ was a priority for the organisation.
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