Josh Addo-Carr has become the second Indigenous NSW Blues player to say he will remain silent during the national anthem at the State of Origin series.
On Wednesday, Addo-Carr told the Sydney Morning Herald, "the anthem doesn't represent us as Indigenous people ... We have to change it."
"We are Australians too. Indigenous people were the first people here, on the land," he said.
"I am a proud Australian man but a proud Indigenous man, too. If it’s not going to stand for my people, why should I sing it?"
Josh Addo-Carr in 2018. Source: AAP
He said the anthem should be changed to recognise Indigenous people.
"How hard can it be? ... Why can't we recognise the Indigenous people of Australia?"
It comes after teammate Cody Walker said on Tuesday he will hold a silent protest while Advance Australia Fair plays at the State of Origin.
"I'm not pushing my views on anyone, it's just how me and my family have grown up and how I feel. I've already voiced my opinion, and I want to reiterate it's just my opinion," Walker told the Sydney Morning Herald.
Addo-Carr and Walker were both part of the Indigenous All Stars team that in February stayed silent as the national anthem.
Former political candidate Warren Mundine told SBS News he had no issue with Indigenous NRL players ditching support for the anthem, despite being happy to sing it himself.
Indigenous players at February's game. Source: AAP
The Indigenous leader, who ran for the Liberal party in the federal election, said like many political parties with factions, there are a range of views.
"I can tell you there are more divisions and splits in those parties compared to the Aboriginal community. [But] look, Aboriginal people don't all think alike," he said.
Walker's stance was backed by league great Johnathan Thurston, who said not enough discussion had come out of the silent protest before the All Stars game.
"The stand the team took on not singing the national anthem ... It was like it was just brushed over," Thurston, an Indigenous player capped 38 times for the national Kangaroos side, said.
Some on social media have offered support to the two players.
The Australian Rugby League Commission, the sport's national governing body, said on Wednesday it had pledged its support for the Uluru Statement, a 2017 manifesto drafted by indigenous leaders to establish a "First Nations Voice" in the Constitution.
"We look forward to walking together with our First Nations peoples towards a constitutionally enshrined voice in the Parliament," ARLC Chairman Peter Beattie said in a statement.
Last year, Queensland schoolgirl Harper Nielsen attracted international attention for refusing to stand during the singing of the national anthem at assembly out of respect for the Indigenous population.
"It says 'Advance Australia Fair' and when it was originally written it meant advance Australia for white skin people," she told SBS News.
"And when it says 'we are young' it means that it ignores the Indigenous Australians who were here before the English for over 50,000 years."
Additional reporting: Reuters
