OHMYGOSSIP — Vinta Morgan has revealed he was racially profiled at 11 years old.
The ‘Coronation Street’ star – who plays Ronnie Bailey on the ITV soap – has opened up on his experiences with racism, and recalled one “very moment” in particular from his childhood.
He said: “One of the main experiences I can think about is when I was eleven, a police officer stopped me on the street and asked me to tip my bag out onto the floor.
“I had to throw all my stuff out and I didn’t know what to do, it was really for nothing. I was picked on, and I’ll never forget it, it was very scary.
“I know now as an adult when I look back on it I think ‘hold on a minute I was so small and this great big ogre of a man bullied me and got me to throw my stuff out on the street’.
“I was powerless and didn’t have the ability to express myself. You don’t allow these things to dampen your ability to thrive, but also you want to be part of change and help things to be better, but also it does take time.”
The actor noted the impact “subtle, systemic racism” has had on his life, and how tough his journey has been.
He explained: “Subtle, systemic, racism has had a profound impact on my life, growing up in Hackney, I got the impression at points in my life I was underclass because of the colour of my
“Like many of my generation I found my value in my world very late in life, I would also like to say that if it wasn’t for many conscious anti-racist white people, I wouldn’t have made it here either.
“I don’t want to understate that it took a lot of hard work, the hard knocks and self-doubt I had to endure, the best part is that my best work is yet to come, and I’m here, and I’m able to be involved in this moment and be able to enjoy it, and it’s no doubt ‘Corrie’ is an opportunity of a lifetime.”
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