Kei Kamara Shares Personal Bullying Experience After 15-Year-Old Ghanaian Teen Shot Dead in USA
Salamatu Y. Kamara Sierra Leonean football legend Kei Kamara has shared an emotional video tribute to Javits Frimpong, the 15-year-old Ghanaian immigrant who was fatally shot in the Bronx, New York, last week, saying the teenager’s story hits close to home because of his own experiences as a young African immigrant in the United States.
Frimpong, who reportedly arrived in the Bronx from Ghana a year ago to join his father and begin a new life in the United States, was shot in the abdomen shortly before 9:30 a.m. on Thursday, 29 October, while on his way to school near East 171st Street and Crotona Place. He was later pronounced dead at the hospital.
Police are searching for three teenage suspects in connection with the shooting, and no arrests had been made as of the time of reporting.
In his tribute, Kamara reflected on his own journey, revealing that he migrated to the United States as a refugee in October 2000, when he was a teenager. He later became a US citizen and went on to enjoy a professional football career spanning more than 20 years.
The former Leone Stars captain said he could relate to the challenges Frimpong may have faced as a young person moving from Africa to America. He recalled experiencing bullying while attending high school in the United States, particularly because of his skin colour, hair and accent.
Kamara explained that some of his Black American schoolmates mocked him for being darker-skinned, having tightly curled hair and speaking English differently from them.
“The provocations from being too dark, darker than them. My hair being too nappy. My English being so bad to them because it’s not American English,” he recounted.
He said sports, particularly football and volleyball, became an important outlet that helped him cope with the difficulties and build a future.
“I found something that saved me which was sports. I ran away to play soccer. I was closer to the Hispanics. I ran away to play volleyball. I was closer to the Asians that played volleyball and the Samoans,” he said.
According to Frimpong’s father, Thomas Frimpong, the teenager had complained about being bullied at school just days before the shooting. His father told reporters that the school principal had informed him that two students accused of bullying his son had been suspended.
Kamara concluded his tribute with a prayer for Frimpong’s family, expressing sympathy for their loss and reflecting on the challenges young immigrants can face while trying to adjust to life in a new country.