Nobel laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, has said he might consider reapplying for his American Green Card, which he had destroyed in protest against Donald Trump’s election as American president.
This declaration came after Trump was convicted on Thursday in New York on all 34 counts of falsifying business records.
Soyinka had publicly demonstrated his disapproval of Trump’s inauguration as the 45th U.S. President on January 20, 2017, by destroying his Green Card, the permanent resident card that allows one to live and work permanently in the United States.
In a statement reacting to the former U.S. President’s conviction, Soyinka clarified that he might reapply for his Green Card before people start questioning him.
“Seeing that this trite, personal gesture attracted such inordinate attention at the time, let me answer the question before it is asked: Yes, I may choose to apply for restoration of my card of Permanent Residence, known as the Green Card. Possibly,” he said.
He described Trump’s conviction as “daybreak on a new democratic promise” for millions in anguished parts of the world, particularly in vast areas of the African continent.
“For millions in anguished parts of the world, certainly for us in vast swathes of the African continent, this is daybreak on a new democratic promise,” he said. “The warning is clear. Sooner or later, the clamour for equity will break down the stoutest gates guarding the citadel of impunity.”
Soyinka emphasized that the Trump debacle serves as a challenge and a call for preparedness and steadfastness. He warned that various forms of fascism—secular, military, or theocratic—might learn the wrong lessons from this and intensify their self-protection efforts.
“It is ‘Not yet Uhuru’, not anywhere close for humanity in our global village. Nonetheless, a celebration, albeit in a minor key, is justified,” he concluded.
