Latest news with #WendallExplores
Daily Mail
26-05-2025
- Daily Mail
Outrage over British YouTuber's shocking comment to Aboriginal man during on the street interview
A West Australian mayor has hit out at a British YouTuber over the portrayal of his city's First Nations community and a heartbreaking interview with an Indigenous man. YouTuber @WendallExplores visited the state's mining capital, Kalgoorlie-Boulder, located in the Goldfields-Esperance region, around 600 kilometres northeast of Perth. In a 26-minute video titled Drunk In Australia's Roughest Outback Town, Wendall explored the city and interacted with several locals, including an Indigenous man called Jeff. The video's description reads: 'Known as a wild place where miners risk it all to make their fortune in the goldfields of the area, it is also a place where the streets are unpredictable and wild. 'Aboriginal communities make the long trip from faraway remote places to visit the town to access vital services, crime and homelessness is rife and scantily clad ladies serve cold pints. 'I met the locals and visitors and enjoyed a few cold ones myself.' Speaking to Jeff, Wendall asked: 'What's Kalgoorlie like? People say it's a wild town, a dangerous town. Is that true?' Jeff agreed that it could be 'rough at night' before revealing he had been an alcoholic since he was 18. 'How do you spend your days?' Wendall asked 'Sometimes I have a quiet day, sometimes just too much on the drink … There's nothing much to do round (sic) here. Only thing is just that,' Jeff said. In the tragic exchange, the Indigenous man revealed he had been sleeping on the streets 'for two years'. 'You've got to try and drink less, mate,' Wendall said. 'I know it's hard … Are you drunk already today?' 'I'll be going soon,' Jeff said The city has an Indigenous population of about 4,397 and 29,109 non-Indigenous residents. Glenn Wilson, who has been Mayor of Kalgoorlie-Boulder since October 2023, has criticised the depiction of his city. 'We do not condone the way footage of our First Nations community was captured and presented,' he told He said any stories involving Indigenous Australians needed to be 'approached with cultural sensitivity, respect, and in consultation with the community'. Wilson argued that sharing moments with individuals 'experiencing hardship' without 'the right cultural awareness risks reinforcing harmful stereotypes'. He said the video failed to help viewers understand the real challenges the Indigenous community face and the work being done in his city to address these challenges. Wendall, who had previously visited Kalgoorlie on a few occasions, said he always wants to learn from the stories of those he speaks to. He said he wanted to understand the town better and enjoyed his conversation with Jeff, who he described as a 'very sweet and calm man'. According to the latest data from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, in every Australian jurisdiction except for the Northern Territory, the proportion of First Nations people who drank more than 10 alcoholic standard drinks per week, or more than four standard drinks in a single day at least once a month declined from 48 per cent in 2010 to 33 per cent in 2023. The gap in the disease burden between First Nations and non-Indigenous Australians decreased between 2003 and 2018. A range of factors is responsible for the gap including disconnection to culture, traditions and country, social exclusion, discrimination and isolation, trauma, poverty, and lack of adequate access to services. Alcohol use was the second largest contributor to the total disease burden in 2018. In April 2025, the City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder released a report addressing transitional Aboriginal homelessness and anti-social behaviour across regional Australia. The six-month research project involved over 30 stakeholders across Western Australia, South Australia, and the Northern Territory, and features case studies from communities including Broome, Ceduna, Alice Springs, Darwin, and Kununurra. The report found 'culturally informed, locally driven solutions are key to achieving real and lasting change'.
News.com.au
25-05-2025
- Entertainment
- News.com.au
‘Risks reinforcing harmful stereotypes': Mayor's response to viral conversation
A mayor in Western Australia has criticised a British YouTuber's depiction of his city's First Nations community in a video that described it as 'Australia's roughest outback town'. Regarded as the state's mining capital, Kalgoorlie-Boulder is located in the Goldfields-Esperance region, about 600 kilometres northeast of Perth, and has an Indigenous population of about 4397 (compared to 29,109 non-Indigenous residents). Last week, YouTuber @WendallExplores shared a 26-minute video with his 142,000 subscribers, documenting his recent visit to the city, titled, Drunk In Australia's Roughest Outback Town. 'Known as a wild place where miners risk it all to make their fortune in the goldfields of the area, it is also a place where the streets are unpredictable and wild,' a description of the video, watched some 116,000 times, reads. 'Aboriginal communities make the long trip from faraway remote places to visit the town to access vital services, crime and homelessness is rife and scantily clad ladies serve cold pints. I met the locals and visitors and enjoyed a few cold ones myself.' One particular interaction from the video has been making the rounds on social media – a tragic conversation between Wendall and a local Indigenous man named Jeff. 'What's Kalgoorlie like? People say it's a wild town, a dangerous town. Is that true?' Wendall began by asking. Jeff responded that it could be 'rough at night' but less so during the day, before telling the YouTuber he had been an alcoholic since he was 18. Wendall continued: 'How do you spend your days?' 'Sometimes I have a quiet day, sometimes just too much on the drink … There's nothing much to do round (sic) here. Only thing is just that,' Jeff said. Then asked by Wendall if he had housing or slept rough, Jeff said he had been sleeping 'in the streets for two years'. 'You've got to try and drink less, mate,' Wendall said. 'I know it's hard … Are you drunk already today?' 'I'll be going soon,' Jeff said. Video 'risks reinforcing harmful stereotypes' Glenn Wilson has been Mayor of Kalgoorlie-Boulder since October 2023. Though he welcomed Wendall's decision to visit the city 'over somewhere like Sydney or Perth, we do not condone the way footage of our First Nations community was captured and presented'. 'It's vital that stories involving Aboriginal people are approached with cultural sensitivity, respect, and in consultation with the community,' Mr Wilson, who described Kalgoorlie-Boulder as 'a vibrant and welcoming place to call home', told 'The dignity and privacy of individuals – particularly those experiencing hardship – must be protected. 'Capturing and sharing these moments without the right cultural awareness risks reinforcing harmful stereotypes rather than helping people understand the real challenges and the work being done to address them.' Wendall, who has friends in Western Australia and has travelled through Kalgoorlie 'a few times in the past', told he did not have 'predetermined intentions' upon deciding to make the video. 'I've done this for too long now. You have to just roll with the punches – it depends who you bump into on a particular day in a particular place,' he explained. 'I was pretty sure from past experience that Kalgoorlie would have some interesting characters to chat to if I wandered around long enough.' 'Clearly there is some kind of issue there' The creative said he was 'genuinely interested in trying to learn from the stories of everyone I speak to in my videos'. 'Sometimes I learn from their wisdom and experiences and sometimes I learn what not to do from their tales of mistakes made,' he continued. 'I employ the same tactic when filming as when the camera is off. Listen and have empathy for the position the person is in. Meet someone at their level. Be gentle, don't judge. 'I wanted to learn more about the community in Kalgoorlie so I can understand the town better. Clearly there is some kind of issue there. The vast majority of people wandering around drinking in the daytime are Indigenous Australians, so clearly there is some kind of reason for that.' Wendall described Jeff – the Indigenous man who talked to him about his experience with alcoholism – as 'a very sweet and calm man to chat to, so it was a very natural conversation caught on camera'. 'I think it would take 100 visits to even scratch the surface of what is actually going on in the town with regard to (substance and mental health issues in the Indigenous community),' he added. 'I think I more simply showcased the individual situations of the people I spoke to rather than uncovered some societal truths.' Mr Wilson acknowledged that Wendall's video raised 'serious and real challenges … particularly those shared by Jeff and other First Nations people' that cannot be ignored. 'The stories of substance abuse, addiction, mental health issues, transitional homelessness, and lack of housing services reflect what we are seeing here on the ground,' Mr Wilson said. 'These problems are complex, and unfortunately, they're not unique to Kalgoorlie-Boulder.' The most recent Closing the Gap data, published by the Productivity Commission last July, revealed that only five of its 19 targets are on track to be met. Concerningly, progress toward reducing the rate of Indigenous adults in incarceration, children in out-of-home care, and people dying by suicide – which is the leading cause of death for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged 15 to 39 – had gone backwards. At the same time, suicide rates for Indigenous youths have climbed to an average of four times that of non-Indigenous children. Such issues are exacerbated by the ongoing trauma experienced by First Nations people as a result of colonisation, dispossession from land, and the institutional racism and discrimination they continue to face. In every Australian jurisdiction bar the Northern Territory, the proportion of First Nations people who consumed alcohol in ways that put their health at risk – by drinking more than 10 standard drinks per week, or more than four standard drinks in a single day at least once a month – declined from 48 per cent in 2010 to 33 per cent in 2023, per the latest data from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. Yet alcohol use remains the second-largest contributor to total disease (fatal and non-fatal) burden in First Nations people. Police in the Goldfields region have long reported issues with crime and anti-social behaviour, including street drinking and sly-grogging – the practice of supplying alcohol to dry communities or people on the banned drinkers register. 'It's not about pointing fingers' In order 'to truly understand the drivers of these issues and to guide action, not just locally but across regional Australia', the City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder commissioned the Anti-Social Behaviour and Transitional Aboriginal Homelessness Study, Mr Wilson said. The six-month study, published earlier this year and led by City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder CEO Andrew Brien, involved input of the more than 30 stakeholders, including Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations, police, frontline service providers, and local government leaders from WA and the NT, as well as South Australia. Not only does the 'landmark' report identify systemic gaps, Mr Wilson said it also 'showcases grassroots solutions that are working in some of the most remote and complex parts of the country'. 'What we found is that the core issues are consistent: lack of safe, stable housing; disconnection from community and country; service fragmentations; and an urgent need for wraparound support, including culturally-appropriate mental health and addiction services,' he explained. 'We believe real change starts with listening to the people and organisations already doing the work.' As part of their findings, the stakeholders have called for more co-ordination, better data, long-term investment and support for local leadership and solutions. '(We're also) proposing a national think tank to bring together frontline voices, and we're putting forward a motion at the Australian Local Government Association National Assembly to advocate for place-based, culturally-informed responses that align with Closing the Gap,' Mr Wilson added. 'This is a national issue, and we are proud to be helping lead the conversation. It's not about pointing fingers, but about really working together to make a difference for people in Kalgoorlie-Boulder and beyond.'
