ANTHONY JOSHUA will not take a knee tomorrow before the Kubrat Pulev fight but is still dedicated to beating racism.
The 31-year-old British son of Nigerian parents was so determined to attend a Black Lives Matter march in June – following the murder of George Floyd by US police – he did so in a knee brace while nursing a slight injury.
Anthony Joshua won’t take the knee before fighting Kubrat Pulev[/caption]
AJ will instead use his power to help reshape society[/caption]
In a Watford park close to his home, AJ read a section from a powerful poem, declaring racism a virus that is destroying lives and communities.
And one of his rising proteges, Joshua Buatsi, took the knee before his Sky Sports bout back in October.
But the WBA, IBF and WBO king will not take the stance at Wembley Arena tonight, instead he will use his power to reshape society.
He revealed: “Good question. No, I won’t take the knee.
“I’m trying to do more tangible things. What we’re trying to do is create a union to support British culture.
“That’s important – to showcase people from the Afro-Caribbean community as valuable members of British society. I think that’s more important.
“That’s what we’re working on at the minute. Different athletes, different people, different places.
“So taking a knee is important – 100 per cent. But for me, personally, I’m doing something different this time around.”
Back in May, AJ worked exclusively with SunSport to champion real-life heroes in the Who Cares Wins awards.
And the KO artist wants to continue celebrating the brave men and women – with a large immigrant and BAME representation – who help and care for the most vulnerable people in the country.
He said: “I’ve employed someone with the team who is actually working on it. It’s a difficult task but no success comes without difficulty.
“Hopefully it comes to fruition and it’s really only to do positive things in the great British environment.
“There’s sometimes issues with stigma and stereotypes. So it’s to showcase NHS workers, architects, athletes and be positive for everyone in the community.
“We’ve created a deck, a website, and we’re doing foundational things with grassroots charities.
“I’m not a full-time activist so I’m more than likely to slip up here and there.
“So what I would like to do is to team up with charities who deal with these things day in and day out and support their causes and champion certain things.”
Source: Boxing - thesun.co.uk
