Nobel Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, says he has forgiven Americans for selecting former President Donald Trump whom he described as a “racist” and a “xenophobe”.
Soyinka said this during an interview with Arise Television on Wednesday.
The Nobel Laureate, who had in 2016 torn his American immigrant visa to shreds for voting Trump, said he would not be renewing the green card since he usually visits the United States even without it.
The playwright, who displayed pieces of his torn green card, stated that America had redeemed itself with the removal of Trump
Soyinka said, “I feel honoured to be associated with the democratic forces of the United States for correcting the unbelievable error that they committed four years ago.”
On the green card issue, he said, “I consider myself back in that community from which I dissociated myself four years ago and I am very glad to be back but I am not renewing my green card, it is not necessary. I go in and out as a visiting alien and that is good enough for me.”
The Nobel Laureate said he was very much concerned with the US elections in 2016 because the country has a huge Nigerian population, adding that America’s history would not be complete without blacks.
He said he tried to warn them about the impending danger of a Trump Presidency but his advice was ignored hence his decision to tear his green cars to shreds.
Soyinka added, “The complacency was very painful and I said if you people are so careless as to let this racist, this monster, this xenophobic aberrant, this disrespect of the female gender, this serial bankrupt, this man who called your own society a shithole country, if you are so careless as to let him become the next President, I am moving out.”
He said in a way, he was happy about the attack on the Capitol building by pro-Trump rioters. The playwright said he wanted Americans to understand how fragile democracy is.
