Late footballer, Justin Fashanu has been inducted into the National Football Museum’s Hall of Fame
Fashanu who was England’s first male English professional to come out as gay while still playing, back in 1990, was inducted into the National Football Museum’s Hall of Fame on Wednesday, on what would have been his 59th birthday.
His niece Amal Fashanu who received the award on his behalf at the museum in Manchester during LGBT History Month, said:
Today would have been Uncle Justin’s 59th birthday and what a way to celebrate it on his behalf.
‘One of my favourite memories of Uncle Justin was his playful, cheeky character. He was so fun to be around and he would have been the life and soul of this event.
‘Justin Fashanu was talented, smart, well-loved and charming. It warms my heart to witness his legacy being honoured more than 21 years after his untimely passing.
‘It’s unfortunate that we are still discussing discrimination in football in 2020 and it’s because of this harsh reality that we decided to create a platform in his name to tackle homophobia, racism and mental health within the game.
Amal, who campaigns against homophobia in sport and is a co-founder of The Justin Fashanu Foundation, added: The Justin Fashanu Foundation would like to thank the National Football Museum and all stakeholders involved who came together to honour my Uncle Justin.’
A decade after Justin Fashanu came out as gay, he took his own life. His body was found in a garage in East London on May 2, 1998.
Last year, Justin’s brother, John admitted in an interview with Mail On Sunday that he acted like a ‘monster’ towards him after discovering he was homosexual in 1990.
Justin, who played for a total of 22 clubs in England, North America, Scotland and New Zealand was the first black footballer to rake in a £1million transfer fee with his move from Norwich to Nottingham Forest in 1981.
