Star Wars: The Phantom Menace actor Liam Neeson has recently gone under fire after admitting publicly that he had once had racist thoughts and even attempted a hate attack in the past. Though Neeson has gone to admit that he was wrong at the time, the online community is not so forgiving. Now Neeson has gone on to Good Morning America to clarify his story.
Check it out here:
"I caught myself on. It really shocked me, this primal urge I had. It shocked me, and it hurt me. I did seek help. I went to a priest, I went to confession (I was reared a Catholic). I had two very good friends that I talk to… to get rid of this [feeling]. I'm not racist."
To clarify, Neeson had admitted to planning a hate attack after a dear friend of his had admitted that she was raped by a black man. Neeson then went on to go out and seek his "revenge" by trying to be "set upon" by a black person so that he could "unleash physical violence." Fortunately, the attack never got to happen, and Neeson himself admitted that he felt horrible after the events, trying to flush the hate out.
Neeson said that the event happened about 40 years ago, well into his 20s. Now he's 66-years-old, and a lot of people are floored at why he had suddenly put this out now.
The online community has been relentless even demanding a boycott of Neeson's films (and a lot more), but there are some that think that Neeson's admission as actually a brave one, and his real intent was to show how wrong racist thoughts are. Ex-footballer John Barnes definitely thinks that Neeson deserves a medal for his admission:
Whatever happens, I think people just really need to put the quote in context. Personally, I'm on Barnes' side on this one, and I think others should start looking at the bigger picture before posting angry accusations online.
See Also: Star Wars Actor Liam Neeson Under Fire For Admitting Past Racism
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