Shaka Hislop has been awarded Freedom of Newcastle and will be Newcastle United's guest of honour for the clash with Arsenal on Monday evening.
Hislop will receive the honour formally at the Civic Centre tonight with the ceremony starting at 6.30pm. Former United stars David Kelly, Lee Clark, Steve Howey and John Beresford will all be in attendance.
The former Toon goalkeeper's work with Show Racism the Red Card as president has earned him the accolade but he has made it clear the work that the foundation started in the mid-1990s must continue. Hislop has documented the racist incident that sparked the charity's foundation when he was subjected to a sickening verbal attack by youths.
From that day on in 1996, Shaka helped found Show Racism the Red Card. From very small beginnings, it has grown into the UK’s biggest anti-racism education charity.
Shaka now lives near Boston, USA. He has become one of the leading speakers on the subject of anti-racism education on both sides of the Atlantic. He delivered a key lecture at the ‘Black Britain and Beyond’ event at Newcastle University last year, and will be the guest of honour at Newcastle’s game with Arsenal at St James’ Park on Monday night.
Show Racism the Red Card is celebrating it’s 26th anniversary this year. Since 1996 more than 850,000 young people have taken part in the charity’s anti-racism workshops.
Hislop told Chronicle Live today: "It means an awful lot to me. As much of an honour as this is though my mind goes back 25 years when this campaign started.
"This (freedom of the city) was not our motivation, it was going into schools and communities with my team-mates, and trying to give back. This was a city where we were plying our trade and raising our kids.
"To come from that to where we are now and see everything this campaign has achieved in the last 25 years has been surreal in some respects. It is an incredible honour to receive this award on behalf of so many people that have contributed."
And reflecting on his experiences after being abused on Barrack Road, Hislop said: "It started on the back of a racist incident that I was subject to at St James' Park at a filling station. I was filling up my car one night and a group of youths came walking down the hill shouting racist abuse at me.
"As they got closer one of them recognised who I was and then started chanting my name and asking for an autograph. I had my wife in the car and we got away as quickly as we could.
"But it sparked a conversation with myself and Ged Grebby the charity's founder who was working with a group against racism. Within 50 yards I had witnessed racist abuse and then people chanting my name, and Ged felt that the duality of who I was in the North-East at the time was a chance to create a foundation to speak at the time, and the club were willing to support me and all of my team-mates too.
"That sparked it for us to go into classrooms and talk about our experiences from all four corners of earth. We showed we could be better because of our experiences and how we made those things work and that was a good message to take into schools and that was as far as we were thinking. We could not think that it would prove to be such a valuable foundation for the work that has gone on since."
*For a longer read from Lee Ryder's interview with Shaka Hislop stay with Chronicle Live
