Will Connolly, immediately dubbed Egg Boy by the world after he smashed an egg on the head of Fraser Anning, has appeared on The Project to talk about that viral incident.
[jwplayer iBGEdOGB]
Since egging Senator Anning after his response to the murder of 50 people in the Christchurch terror attacks, Will – as he prefers to be called – has made international headlines, given free lifetime tickets to festivals and concerts, and has inspired remixes, memes, and t-shirts.
“After that tragedy in Christchurch, I thought the world should be supporting those victims … and the senator released a statement which was pretty much a divisive hate speech … and I was just flat out disgusted,” he told The Project’s Hamish McDonald.
Will said he had actually gone to listen to Anning’s speech in Melbourne to see what else he had to say – if he would apologise but Anning obviously didn’t.
“I actually went in there and listened to him for an hour,” Will said. “I wanted to forgive him then he said more things” which Will did not repeat.
He didn’t expect Anning to react the way he did – slapping him twice. He also didn’t expect his actions to go viral.
“Too much attention has been brought away form the victims,” Will said.
The act itself was just meant to be “a few laughs with the mates” but he does understand that egging Anning was “not the right thing to do.”
“There’s no reason to physically attack anyone.”
When asked if he would apologise for egging Anning, Will again said that he understood why some people were upset but believes the positives of his actions outweigh the negative.
“This egg has united people.”
A GoFundMe page has raised almost $80,000 for Will and “every cent” will go to the victims of Christchurch.
Will told Hamish he has no political motivations, no particular leanings or whatnot. He’s just a lad for “humanity”.
Oh, and his nickname in high school was EGG BOY because he ain’t too many boiled eggs for lunch.
Ever since he cracked the egg that divided the nation, Melbourne teenager Will Connolly, better known as #EggBoy, has been both vilified and dubbed the “hero of the Earth”.
Will approached us to set the record straight. #TheProjectTV pic.twitter.com/31VogQPs5C
— The Project (@theprojecttv) March 25, 2019
After his interview, Will told his over 600,000 followers on Instagram that he was “so proud to stand for what is right.”
I encourage everyone to stand up for what you all believe in. I do not condone violence and I do not condone egging someone, and everyone has a right to an opinion, but as I listened to Senator Anning for over an hour, I realised a point had to be made and if no one was going to do anything, then I was.
I’m so humbled to be able to shed more light in response to the Christchurch shootings. My heart goes out to all who are suffering. I’ve had one lady from Christchurch tell me that through this period of darkness in her life, it’s the first time she’s smiled since the shootings, which meant so much to me.
The main focus here has to be the people who are suffering and the issue at hand, and I’m really happy it has united people the way it has.
I will continue to try and make the world a better place and I hope the end of racism is on the horizon. Keep spreading the love.
