Unemployment and a life spent locked up in boys' homes and jails fuel volcanic emotions that lie below an eloquence which belies his years of incarceration. Two weeks ago, in the main street of Taree, the volcano erupted. I'll get you arrested'. McDonald beat the woman to the police station but, with his anger and a lengthy record, was charged with assault. He's looking forward to another day in court.
Respect is a reciprocal relationship which, when it works, promotes harmony.
Individual bonds formed through school or football can hold even when black and white, as communities, are at each other's throats. But when it fails, when someone refuses to play by the rules, it releases ugly emotions. At a recent Taree City Bulls rugby league game, racist abuse from the sideline provoked a confrontation between players and fans of the rival Old Bar side. Respect finds it hard to bridge Taree's racial divide. If any black family can be said to have earned the respect of Taree it is the Saunders, led by Uncle Horrie and Auntie Faith.