Rugby player Bundee Aki apologises for liking Israel Folau’s anti-gay post
Ireland rugby player Bundee Aki (David Rogers/Getty)
Ireland rugby player Bundee Aki has apologised for “mistakenly” liking an anti-gay post from Israel Folau and said he has “nothing but love and respect” for gay people.
In a post on Twitter today, Aki wrote: “I just want to address that I mistakenly liked Israel Folau’s post without paying any attention to the content.
Bundee Aki: ‘I have nothing but love and respect’ for gay people
“When I realised what the post was about I immediately unliked it straight away, as it does not reflect my views as a Christian.”
He continued: “Yes I do believe in God but my belief is that he is a God of kindness, peace and loves people in all aspects.
“I have family members, friends and I have worked with many people who are gay and I have nothing but love and respect for everyone of them.
“I do want to apologise for any confusion or offence this may have caused anyone, and I will pay more attention to what I ‘like’ in future.”
Since Australian rugby player Israel Folau posted anti-gay comments online earlier this month, a number of rugby players have come forward to both condemn and support him.
England rugby union player Billy Vunipola came out in support of Israel Folau
England rugby union player Billy Vunipola received backlash earlier this month when he posted online in support of Folau’s anti-gay views.
Alongside a verse from the bible, he wrote on April 12: “This morning I got three phone calls from people telling me to ‘unlike’ the @izzyfolau post. This is my position on it.
Bundee Aki (David Rogers/Getty)
“I don’t HATE anyone neither do I think I’m perfect. There just comes a point when you insult what I grew up believing in that you just say enough is enough, what he’s saying isn’t that he doesn’t like or love those people.
“He’s saying how we live our lives needs to be closer to how God intended them to be.”
Vunipola added: “Man was made for woman to procreate that was the goal no?”
Joe Marler showed his opposition to Israel Folau’s views with spectacular online trolling
However, England rugby international player Joe Marler showed his support for gay people—and his opposition to Folau’s views—in a spectacular way. Marler trolled Folau by sending him photos of men kissing on Twitter.
Folau was widely condemned for the anti-gay posts and has come under fire in the past for his anti-LGBT+ views.
Rugby Australia announced earlier this month that they intended to terminate his contract over the posts. He has since requested a hearing on the matter, which is yet to take place.
