"This egg has united people": Teen breaks silence after egging Australian senator
It was the egg crack heard around the world. A Melbourne teenager ran up to Australian Sen. Fraser Anning last week and cracked an egg on his head. Will Connolly said he did it in the name of justice after the senator blamed Muslim immigration on the mosque shootings in Christchurch, New Zealand, which didn't sit right with the teen.
"After that tragedy in Christchurch, I thought the world should be supporting all those victims, giving them love and passion. And the senator released a statement, which was pretty much a divisive hate speech blaming the victims for the attack," Connolly told Australia's Network 10. "I was just flat-out disgusted."
Connolly was referring to Sen. Anning's statement following the mass shooting: "The real cause of the bloodshed on New Zealand streets today is the immigration program which allowed Muslim fanatics to migrate to New Zealand in the first place."
The egging turned the 17-year-old into a global sensation. He was memed, hailed as a hero and even received a GoFundMe, which far surpassed it's $50,000 goal. Connolly said he'll be donating the money to victims, and the focus should remain on them.
"I didn't think this was going to blow up. In fact, it's blown up completely out of proportion, to the point where it's kind of embarrassing because too much of the attention is brought away from the real victims suffering — we should be focusing on them," Connolly said.
"I understand what I did was not the right thing to do, however this egg has united people and money had been raised — tens of thousands of dollars has been raised for those victims."
The suspected shooter, an Australian national, has been charged with murder. Just days after the attack, New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced an immediate ban on sales of "military-style" semi-automatic firearms and high-capacity magazines.
Connolly said he's unsure if he'll accept other gifts he's received, like a lifetime of free beer in Canada and Wales, and admitted that his mother did not approve of his actions. "There's no reason to physically attack anyone. She's glad I stood up for what I believe in; she definitely disagrees with the way I did it," he said.
At the end of the interview, Connolly answered the million dollar question: does he even like eggs?
"Well, funnily enough, I was actually called 'Egg Boy' before this happened. I'd eat boiled eggs at lunch and all the girls would say, 'Get away from me, that reeks,'" he said with a laugh. "I'm officially off the eggs now."
