Nigerian footballer, John Fashanu, in a recent interview stated that he paid his brother £75,000 to prevent him coming out as gay. ...
Nigerian footballer, John Fashanu, in a recent
interview stated that he paid his brother £75,000 to prevent him coming out as
gay.
Justin committed suicide in 10998
after becoming the first British footballer to come out as gay. Now, a week after it emerged
that 2 top footballers, including an England star, plan to come out, John
granted an interview to reveal how he handled Justin's case.
In it, he said: “I begged him, I threatened him to
try and stop him coming out. I gave him the money because I didn’t want the
embarrassment for me or my family. Had he come out now, there wouldn’t be an
issue.
Now he’d be hailed a hero. I’ll never forget when Justin first told me. He said
to me: ‘I’m gay’. Then he said to me: ‘I’m planning to go to a newspaper’. I
said to him: ‘Oh heavens forbid.. oh my God. We don’t need that. You’re mad.’
He promised when I gave him the money he wouldn't go out and say that. Two days
later.. bang.. headlines in a newspaper. For me and my family it was like
Hiroshima on our lives. It knocked us dead. People might not like it, but I was
trying to protect my family.
You’ve got to remember the public’s perception of
homosexuality at that time was that it was an abomination. Street boys were
beating up gays in nightclubs. I give him credit for having the courage to come
out and say it.
But it caused a lot of animosity towards him, me,
and my family. During matches, supporters sang at me: ‘You’re big.. you’re
black.. your a*** is up for grabs.. Fashanu.. Fashanu’. My mother died because
of the stress.
But things have changed and I make it very clear: I
was wrong and ignorant. I didn’t understand him. I was trying to protect my
family and career. In the process I lost Justin. He committed suicide because
he was so distraught the world wouldn't accept a black man who was gay."
