New York Times backlash over 'shameful' Jack Charles obituary

The New York Times has been accused of racism over an obituary of a beloved Aboriginal actor that some Australians described as “shameful”.

The post’s Twitter post about Jack Charles’s death said that “he was one of Australia’s leading indigenous actors, but his heroin addiction and penchant for robbery saw him in and out of jail throughout of their life”.

Angry social media users claimed the post, which has since been removed, was offensive and an example of ‘racial profiling’.

The New York Times has come under fire for an obituary of beloved Aboriginal star Jack Charles (pictured) that Australians called “shameful”.

Furious social media users claimed the post was offensive and ‘racially profiling’

‘No, we’re not doing this. He was a noted actor and activist. This does not present a complex person, it is direct racial profiling,” one user wrote.

‘Wow. This is… one of the worst ways I’ve ever seen her story told. What a shame, said another.

‘How to say ‘we are a deaf racist publication’ without saying ‘we are a deaf racist publication’, a third commented.

The original post was later deleted and replaced with a tweet remembering Charles as “one of Australia’s leading Indigenous actors and activists.”

The original post has since been deleted and replaced with a tweet remembering Charles as “one of Australia’s leading Indigenous actors and activists.”

The indigenous actor died of a stroke on September 13 at the age of 79.

Boon Wurrung’s elder Dja Dja Wurrung, Woiwurrung and Yorta Yorta passed away at the Royal Melbourne Hospital, surrounded by family and close friends.

In a statement, his family said he “will live on in our hearts and memories through his many roles on screen and stage.”

The Aboriginal icon was named NAIDOC Male Elder of the Year in 2022.

Senator Lidia Thorpe posted on social media that the Aboriginal community had “lost our King”.

The indigenous actor died of a stroke on September 13 at the age of 79. The indigenous icon was named the NAIDOC Male Elder of the Year in 2022.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese took to Twitter to say: ‘Jack Charles lived a hard life and leaves a happy legacy. He endured cruelty, he knew pain.

He survived each turn of the vicious cycle, holding on to his humanity. Jack Charles elevated our nation with his heart, his genius, his creativity and his passion.’

Charles was separated from his mother as an infant, raised at the Salvation Army Children’s Home on Box Hill in Melbourne, where he was the only Aboriginal child.

He was raised as a Christian and remained religious until his death.

The Aboriginal actor spent decades in and out of prison and battled serious addiction.

He said his struggle with addiction and the law was a reaction to childhood trauma, such as being separated from his mother as a baby and experiencing physical and sexual abuse growing up in an orphanage.

However, Charles managed to get clean in 2008, turning his career around at the same time that a documentary about him, Bastardy, was released.

Anthony Albanese took to Twitter to say: ‘Jack Charles lived a hard life and leaves behind a happy legacy. He endured cruelty, he knew pain’

The Stolen Generations survivor starred in several ABC and SBS television shows, including Cleverman, Wolf Creek, and Who Do You Think You Are? -the last of whom discovered the identity of his father.

Charles revealed on his Jack Charles vs The Crown show in London that he struggled with a drug addiction as a child and often turned to petty crime as a result.

He then used his story to influence government legislation and create platforms for other Aboriginal people to open up about their past.

Charles also worked alongside the late Uncle Archie Roach to support current and former indigenous inmates.