James Masters : CNN : 10 Dec 2015
A British soldier who had his leg blown off by a bomb while serving in Iraq has taken the internet by storm after his Facebook post attacking Islamophobia went viral.
Chris Herbert (left), who served in the British Army in Basra, Iraq, lost his right leg when a bomb went off next to his Land Rover in 2007. One of his comrades, Private Luke Simpson, died in the attack, while two other soldiers were also injured.
Herbert, who was 19 when he suffered the life-changing injury, took to Facebook after complaining that he was "getting frustrated" with people expecting him to be racist after losing his leg. He told those holding the entire Muslim faith responsible for terrorism to: "Get a grip of your lives, hug your family and get back to work."
The post has been shared [over 171,000] times and has been hugely popular on social media. (Read post here.)
Herbert, who lives in Portsmouth, on the south coast of England, said he took the decision to speak out after an "Islamophobic group tried to recruit" him as a poster boy for their organization. He says that upon his return to the UK he was abused and discriminated against on a number of occasions by "white brits". Herbert added: "A White brit pushed my wheelchair away from a lift so he could use it first. "(Although a lot of people helped in my recovery! I don't hate white brits either! hahaha)."
"Blaming all Muslims for the actions of groups like Daeshe and the Taliban, is like blaming all Christians for the actions of the KKK or Westboro Baptist Church," he added. "Get a grip of your lives, hug your family and get back to work."
The post has drawn widespread praise on Facebook and Twitter. One friend, Alastair Campbell, wrote beneath the comment: "Amen brother - you've hit the nail on the head, and it couldn't have come from a better bloke." Another friend, Alex Elbourne, added: "Your words ring true Chris. Don't ever let the haters get you down. Don't ever let anyone tell you what you should think. I am proud to call you a friend."
Chris Herbert (left), who served in the British Army in Basra, Iraq, lost his right leg when a bomb went off next to his Land Rover in 2007. One of his comrades, Private Luke Simpson, died in the attack, while two other soldiers were also injured.
Herbert, who was 19 when he suffered the life-changing injury, took to Facebook after complaining that he was "getting frustrated" with people expecting him to be racist after losing his leg. He told those holding the entire Muslim faith responsible for terrorism to: "Get a grip of your lives, hug your family and get back to work."
The post has been shared [over 171,000] times and has been hugely popular on social media. (Read post here.)
Herbert, who lives in Portsmouth, on the south coast of England, said he took the decision to speak out after an "Islamophobic group tried to recruit" him as a poster boy for their organization. He says that upon his return to the UK he was abused and discriminated against on a number of occasions by "white brits". Herbert added: "A White brit pushed my wheelchair away from a lift so he could use it first. "(Although a lot of people helped in my recovery! I don't hate white brits either! hahaha)."
"Blaming all Muslims for the actions of groups like Daeshe and the Taliban, is like blaming all Christians for the actions of the KKK or Westboro Baptist Church," he added. "Get a grip of your lives, hug your family and get back to work."
The post has drawn widespread praise on Facebook and Twitter. One friend, Alastair Campbell, wrote beneath the comment: "Amen brother - you've hit the nail on the head, and it couldn't have come from a better bloke." Another friend, Alex Elbourne, added: "Your words ring true Chris. Don't ever let the haters get you down. Don't ever let anyone tell you what you should think. I am proud to call you a friend."
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