The Paris resident racially abused by Chelsea fans on a metro ahead of their Champions League encounter with Paris Saint-Germain has said how he tried to hide the incident from his wife and kids.
Souleymane S. attempted to board an underground train in Paris on Tuesday evening, moments before Chelsea’s Champions League tie with PSG but was seen on amateur video being shoved back by Blues fans, before being racially abused.
After days of media attention, the victim has now spoken out about the incident, one which he attempted to keep from his family.
“I did not know that the incident was being filmed. The fact that people are now talking about it has given me the courage to complain to the police. These people, these English fans, must be located, punished and locked up for what they did. This should not go unpunished,” Souleymane told Le Parisien.
“I wanted to get into the carriage, but a group of English fans blocked me and pushed me away. I lost my phone in the scramble. They were shouting at me in English, but I didn’t really understand them because I don’t speak English.
“But I realised they were Chelsea fans and that it was connected to the PSG game. I also understood they were attacking me because of the colour of my skin. I was not really surprised by it. I live with racism, although it was the first time it happened in the metro.
“I stayed in front of those fans for a long time. Someone told me that I had been brave to resist them. I think it all lasted for six or seven minutes. At some point, the RATP (public transport operator) intervened, but only to ensure there would not be any fighting and that the metro could run as scheduled. Nobody defended me, but what could they have done.
“I just waited for the next metro to arrive. I did not talk about it with my wife and children. Should I tell them that their dad was being pushed and shoved in the subway because he is black. This is useless…”