Published 11:10 IST, June 24th 2020
Bubba Wallace's mom says NASCAR racer has been called the dreaded 'n-word' before too
Bubba Wallace's mom, Desiree Wallace, revealed her son was targetted with racist attacks and jibes in the past. She also addressed the noose incident.
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Bubba Wallace - NASCAR's only full-time African-American racer - has been vocally supporting the ongoing protests against racism in the country. The 26-year-old racer used his NASCAR platform to showcase his support for the Black Lives Matter movement. He also urged NASCAR to stop using the Confederate flags before the racing company eventually did the same. While the recent Bubba Wallace noose incident has seen a unified NASCAR supporting Wallace's fight against the racist attack, his mother, Desiree Wallace says Bubba has been subject to racist attacks and jibes in the past as well.
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Bubba Wallace called n-word: Desiree Wallace talks racism against her family
On Monday, Desiree Wallace appeared SiriusXM's "The Joe Madison Show" where she opened up on Bubba Wallace's previous experience with racism. Desiree Wallace said the Bubba Wallace noose incident was not the first time the racer was subject to a racist attack. She revealed Bubba Wallace has experienced multiple racist incidents on the track, where a driver used to throw the n-word at him without any hesitation. "This is not his first incident. He's been involved with incidents on the track. If he gets into it with another driver they're quick to throw out the n-word," Desiree said.
Also Read | Bubba Wallace Parents, Net Worth, NASCAR Career, Personal Life And take On Confederate Flag
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Desiree Wallace talks noose incident and reacting to racist jibes
Desiree Wallace further revealed that Bubba has also been told he does not belong in racing. However, it remains unknown if Bubba Wallace's mother was talking about NASCAR or a different racing company. Bubba Wallace used to participate in Bandolero and Legends car racing series before he started competing in NASCAR.
Desiree Wallace also weighed on a noose being found in her son's garage at the Talladega Superspeedway. Desiree, who is a native of Alabama, said she hopes it was not one of her son's team member who committed the offensive act. “I teach my son, ‘You don’t throw back at them. You just get in that race car and win. That’s the way you fight back,‘” she added.
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Also Read | NASCAR Rallies Around Wallace In Poignant Moment
The investigation into the Bubba Wallace noose incident was concluded on Tuesday by the federal authorities. The FBI said Bubba Wallace was not a victim of a hate crime. The noose that was discovered in his garage had been hanging there since October 2019, which was confirmed by NASCAR's video footage. Hence, there was no federal crime committed.
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NASCAR issued a statement to confirm the investigation has been concluded by the FBI. "Photographic evidence confirms that the garage door pull rope fashioned like a noose had been positioned there since as early as last fall. This was obviously well before the 43 team’s arrival and garage assignment," NASCAR said.
(Image Credits: Bubba Wallace Instagram Handle)
11:10 IST, June 24th 2020