Culture

Here’s How Everyone Reacted To Novak Djokovic Having His Visa Cancelled

"Guys, it’s important to note we don’t *know* Djokovic got an exemption because he’s a famous tennis player. It might have just been because he’s rich."

by Joseph Earp  6 January 2022
Novak Djokovic deported from Australia

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In the early hours of this morning, news broke that international tennis star Novak Djokovic was to be deported from Australia after his visa was abruptly cancelled.

Djokovic had previously said that he had been granted an exemption and allowed to enter the country. He even made it all the way to Melbourne airport, where he was held before being moved to a quarantine hotel.

As to the nature of that medical exemption, Djokovic did not disclose details, leading some to assume that it was an excuse to cover up for the fact that he has long expressed scepticism over the coronavirus vaccine.

“Personally I am opposed to vaccination and I wouldn’t want to be forced by someone to take a vaccine in order to be able to travel,” the tennis player said in a Facebook livestream in April of 2020.

Djokovic’s opinions surround vaccine mandates. While he has expressed a general distaste for vaccines, his major umbrage has been with the idea that tennis players will be forced to get the jab. “If it becomes compulsory, what will happen?” Djokovic said in that livestream. “I will have to make a decision. I have my own thoughts about the matter and whether those thoughts will change at some point, I don’t know.”

Clearly, Djokovic’s thoughts haven’t changed — and now he’ll be deported. This is a thorny issue, and it’s worth stressing that Australia has a cruel and inhuman border policy. This is not a celebration of someone getting kicked out of the country — that would be a wrongheaded approach, one that glorifies a vicious system that is deeply worth dismantling.

Just because the person being deported has views that we don’t agree with, that doesn’t make our border policy any better, or more noble. We should resist the policy wherever possible.

It’s also worth noting that the cancellation occurred after significant public outcry. Scott Morrison is losing significant face at the moment after widespread criticism of his decisions concerning coronavirus — according to many, the Prime Minister did not adequately prepare for the burst of case numbers we are currently experiencing. Just yesterday, Morrison was questioned over Novak Djokovic and his medical exemption, and said that he would abide by the decision made by the Victorian government.

Thus, the decision to deport Djokovic can be seen as a foolhardy and last-minute attempt to make it seem as though the country has a better coronavirus policy than it actually does.

And how predictable that it would be a reinforcing of our border policy that the Prime Minister would choose to try and convey the message that the virus is under control.

In the hours since the news broke, Twitter has been afire with memes, takes and arguments concerning the deportation. Here are just some of them: