Liam Neeson who trained as a teacher in Newcastle, tells how he punched a pupil.'I've listened to the whole transcript, Liam Neeson was talking about his film, revenge, and he's talking about how revenge doesn't do anyone any good. He told Sky News: 'I believe that Liam Neeson deserves a medal and I'll tell you why. The Hollywood star sparked controversy after he said he had walked the streets armed with a cosh, hoping he would be approached by 'a black b*****d' so that he could kill him.īarnes, who suffered racist abuse during his football career, has praised Neeson for telling the truth and said his feelings were the result of a negative portrayal of black people in the media. Speaking to the US breakfast show, Neeson said: “The lady journalist was asking me how do you tap into that and I remembered an incident nearly 40 years ago where a very dear friend of mine was brutally raped and I was out of the country and when I came back, she told me about this situation.Former Newcastle United footballer John Barnes has said Liam Neeson deserves a medal for his honesty after the actor revealed he once held violent thoughts about killing a black person in revenge after someone close to him was raped. On Good Morning America today, the Northern Irish-born star insisted he is “not racist”. Neeson has been the subject of widespread criticism and anger since confessing his thoughts. When asked whether Neeson should have his OBE taken away, Barnes said: “So let’s take down that statue of Winston Churchill… a white supremacist and a mass murderer.” The former footballer continued: “I always say, we are all unconscious racists, and he said, unconsciously for a week and a half, that is how he felt.”

He said people now want him “pilloried” and to “never work again”. Liam Neeson made the shocking confession in a press interview (Photo: Getty Images) ‘Unconscious racism’īarnes told Sky News that he respected Neeson’s honesty and for acknowledging his unconscious racism. “Now, the big problem we have is when people are afraid to admit the way they actually feel.”īarnes alluded to the stressful circumstances Neeson had found himself in and the damaging narrative entrenched in society.

The Sky So Big and Black by John Barnes