Ex-AFL star reveals he took magic mushrooms to cope with racism at his former club where he was nicknamed 'CHIMP'
- Collingwood star Heritier Lumumba claims he was subjected to racial comments
- He said he was nicknamed 'Chimp' for eight years while playing at the club
- Lumumba also said he was never supported when speaking out about racism
- He revealed on Tuesday he took magic mushrooms as a coping mechanism
Former AFL star Heritier Lumumba has revealed that ten years of 'racist experiences' at the club drove him to use magic mushrooms.
On Tuesday, Lumumba, 33, spoke out about being nicknamed 'Chimp' for eight years while at Collingwood and ostracized when he tried to speak out.
Lumumba said the club had a 'culture of racist jokes' which heavily impacted his mental health - and is now demanding an apology.
Heritier Lumumba, (pictured left) has revealed that ten years of 'racist experiences' at the Collingwood Football Club drove him to use magic mushrooms
'The CFC must publicly acknowledge that my experiences of racism during my career were inadequately dealt with, which caused further damage to my wellbeing,' he said.
'Without a support network within the club/league that could cater to my specific needs, I used psilocybin (magic mushrooms) out of desperation to deal with my distressed state, which subsequently helped me confront CFC over the issues.'
Lumumba said the racial comments eventually stopped when he addressed them in a meeting with the club in 2013.
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'Immediately following the team meeting, the nickname (Chimp) stopped, as too did the jokes,' he said.
'However, there were still problematic occurrences that followed.'
The 33-year-old said the club did nothing to support his mental health.
Lumumba said Collingwood had a 'culture of racist jokes' which heavily impacted his mental health - as he now demands an apology from his former club
He detailed some of his experiences in a SBS documentary released in 2017, titled 'Fair Game'.
In the film he claimed: 'Australian football culture is a white culture … and nothing taught me that better than the Collingwood Football Club.'
Lumumba eventually left the club in 2014 to play for Melbourne but retired two years later. He now lives in Los Angeles where he has attended Black Lives Matter protests.
Daily Mail Australia has contacted Collingwood Football Club for comment.
Lumumba, 33, said he was nicknamed 'Chimp' for eight years during his time at the club
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