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Egg Boy in Action.png

Everything You Need To Know About Egg Boy

By Kristy Puchko | Politics | March 18, 2019 |

By Kristy Puchko | Politics | March 18, 2019 |

Egg Boy in Action.png

In the wake of the horrific Christchurch massacre, an unlikely hero arose, carrying a raw egg.

Following the tragic news that a white supremacist terrorist opened fired on two mosques, killing 49 people, Queensland senator Fraser Anning decided to lay the blame on New Zealand’s immigration policy “which allows Muslims to migrate to New Zealand in the first place.” It was blatant Islamaphobia that blamed the deaths of Muslims on their very existence. Because Anning tweeted this grotesque statement, he faced instant backlash online. But the following day, while speaking to the press, he was confronted by a more direct response.

17-year-old Melbourne resident Will Connolly smashed a raw egg on the senator’s head, all the while filming it with his phone. Others’ footage of the incident went viral immediately, and Connolly became heralded as “Egg Boy.”

And of course a meme.

What got lost amid the reverie over Anning’s public embarrassment, the senator attacked the minor who’d egged him. Anning punched Connolly twice in the face on camera, and then the boy was tackled by two grown men, including far-right activist Neil Erikson, who shouted, “Get the journalists out of here.” These men held Connolly in a chokehold until the police arrived. Connolly was arrested but was later released without being charged. No one else is facing charges at this time.

Australia’s prime minister Scott Morrison has declared that Anning should face charges for hitting the boy, saying, “The full force of the law should be applied to Sen. Anning.” Victoria Police are reportedly investigating the incident.

Meanwhile, Egg Boy has become a hometown hero, inspiring a mural in Melbourne.

And the internet’s love of Egg Boy resulted in a GoFundMe page to cover his legal fees and “more eggs.” As I write this, the campaign is trending and has already raised $49,130 in just two days. However, Connolly was not the one who set up this page. And according to its creator, he has been in touch and asked that “majority of the money to the victims of the Christchurch terrorist attacks.”

Connolly released a brief video online, with a short warning to aspiring Egg People.

Still, there’s plenty who champion his rebellion, including a string of bands willing to give him free tickets for egging a bigot.

Anning, on the other hand, is doubling down on his rhetoric and his attack on a minor. In a press conference today, he said of hitting Connolly, “He got a slap across the face, which is what his mother should have given him a long time ago because he’s been misbehaving badly.”

A segment on Australia’s Today noted that nearly a million people have signed a petition to get Anning kicked out of parliament because of his virulently bigoted views, which he’s proudly sharing on Twitter.

Lastly, the prime minister of New Zealand, Jacinda Ardern, was asked about Anning’s comments. Her response, “They were a disgrace.”

Sources: Twitter, News.com.au, NYT, Telegraph UK, NZ Herald, Today



Kristy Puchko is the film editor of Pajiba. You can follow her on Twitter.


Header Image Source: Today