Had it not rained in Southampton on the morning of July 8, 2020, washing out play in the West Indies-England cricket Test, Michael Holding, one of the finest quicks of modern times, might never have got an opportunity to pour his heart out on a subject that incises him deeply: the racism that Blacks face in the Western world.
Holding was supposed to be commenting live on television for Sky Sports “but the sky was heavy and dark and full of rain, meaning no play was possible. Without on-field action to discuss, there was only one subject to talk about: the Black Lives Matter movement spawned by the killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin six weeks previously.
“With no cricket and the rain still falling, Sky showed a short film involving me and my commentary colleague, Ebony Rainford-Brent, talking about the Black Lives Matter movement, protests and our personal experiences of racism,” Holding writes in “Why We Kneel, How We Rise” (Simon & Schuster).
“When it was over, I was asked to speak again. And it was live. Ian Ward, the anchor of the show, asked me how hard it was to make that film and speak about such things. Well, I didn’t hold back. And from what I said, and the way I said it, I think people say anger, frustration an emotion. I just about managed to hold back tears,” Holding writes, adding: “I want to be clear: this is not a book of complaints. It is a book of facts. I hope it will enlighten, inspire, surprise, shock move. And above all, help to bring about real change.”
The statistics are quite startling.
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