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UFC Kiwi champion Israel Adesanya has opened up once again about the racism he has faced while living in New Zealand.
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The Kiwi-Nigerian fighter responded to criticism of the protests by New Zealand’s Black Lives Matter. Source: 1 NEWS
The Nigerian-born MMA fighter told the Daily Telegraph that it is something he has grappled with since he was a child.
“I didn’t really realize that being black was a problem until I got to New Zealand,” Adesanya said.
“My first week in school, there was a kid who was being an idiot to me. He lived down the street. He kept passing my house with his friend saying, ‘Go back to your own country, Black.’
“I didn’t get it. He was so weird. I didn’t even know this guy, why was he being so mean to me?”
Adesanya said the abuse led him to fight the bully.
Israel Adesanya Source: 1 NEWS
“Next week at school, he came up to me after the interval and pushed me to the ground, and I lost my shit.
“I hit him, from block D to block K. I hit him for about a minute and a half, and he was crying as I yelled his butt at him. Then I ran away and went into hiding. It was quite a traumatic experience for me.
“I just didn’t understand, why are you being cruel to me because of the color of my skin? I still can’t understand it because I’m not of that creed.”
The interview comes after Adesanya decided to speak at a Black Lives Matter rally in Auckland in June, saying it was heartbreaking to see black people being killed by police in the US. But racism was also a problem in New Zeeland.
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The Kiwi UFC champion says racism is a problem in New Zealand. Source: 1 NEWS
“I just moved to a place in Remuera. I’m on the top floor,” Adesanya said at the time in her speech.
“I have to go by elevator. Three times I have had to make racist whites, scared, jump when they see me, and I smile at them.
“So now I have to stand aside and let them pass so they don’t freak out when they see me. Why? Because I’m black.”
On reflection, Adesanya said he is “proud” of what he said, but frustrated that little has come out of the movement.
“As Jay Z said, ‘I’m not on my knees anymore.’ It no longer makes sense to raise awareness. What we need is for the world to change. Talk to legislators, councilors, mayors, your own city, your own city, your own city, and demand a change from what you think is wrong.
“I’m doing everything I can to change my own world. I can’t change the world, but I can change the world around me, and I think people should try to do that because it’s a shame to see what’s happening to them Black people all over the world. world “.
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After being teased when he was young, Adesanya decided that he needed to learn to defend himself, a choice that changed his life forever. Source: Sunday
However, despite his passionate thoughts and actions towards racism, Adesanya does not see himself as an activist.
“I am still human. I am me and I am still discovering my own self.
“I feel like people are looking at me from a political point of view. I say, ‘Brother, I’m not the person to look at for political shots.’ I’m a fighter who has something to say about what is going on in the world, but I’m not your councilor.
“Go to those legislators and leaders in your city to express your point of view.
“I’m just a normal guy who does extra regular stuff. And I’m doing very well.
“But I’m still the barefoot guy in West Auckland, walking his dogs through the mud.
“I’m still that guy with his headphones at Pak’nSave trying to do my shopping without having 20 people asking for photos.”
