A former pupil of the prestigious Dulwich College has come forward with a stark allegation against Reform UK leader Nigel Farage, claiming he was subjected to racist abuse by a teenage Farage in the early 1980s.
A Childhood Memory of Abuse
Yinka Bankole, now a 54-year-old engineer, has decided to publicly share his story after watching Farage's recent press conference. Bankole claims that when he was a nine-year-old new starter at the south-east London public school in 1980, he was targeted by a 17-year-old Farage.
Bankole vividly recalls an incident in the lower-school playground where Farage, towering over him, asked "Where are you from?" After the young boy gave a confused response, Farage allegedly stated, "That's the way back to Africa," while making a hand gesture pointing into the distance.
The Pattern of Behaviour
According to Bankole, this was not an isolated event. Once his "existence as a target was established," Farage would allegedly wait at the lower-school gate where Bankole was dropped off to repeat the vulgar remark. Bankole describes carrying the memory of what he calls a "look of hatred he had for me, seemingly simply for existing."
He emphasises the impact, stating he will leave it to others to decide if the act was malicious or not, but says "It certainly felt malicious to me." Bankole's parents, a nurse and an osteopath, had come to the UK from Nigeria in the 1950s.
Farage's Response and the Wider Allegations
These claims emerge amidst an ongoing Guardian investigation into allegations of past racism and antisemitism linked to Farage. The Reform leader has offered shifting responses, initially having a lawyer categorically deny he ever engaged in such behaviour.
Later, Farage admitted he may have used "banter" at school that would be viewed differently today, but denied saying anything racist or antisemitic "directly" to an individual. At a press conference on Thursday, he stated he had never been racist or antisemitic with "malice."
Bankole is one of 28 former school contemporaries from Dulwich College who claim to have witnessed offensive behaviour by Farage. He had previously spoken anonymously but chose to put his name to his account, angered by what he saw as Farage's attempt at "denying or dismissing" the hurt caused.
Bankole, who states he is not a member of any political party and has voted for multiple parties, directly challenges Farage's suggestion that people cannot remember events from over four decades ago. "Can a victim of such abuse ever forget? I know I haven't forgotten," he said.
He also expressed a chilling reflection on the potential consequences of Farage holding political power, stating the prospect of the alleged bully having "infinitely more" authority is a "truly chilling thought."
