John Boyega has praised Damilola Taylor for leaving a legacy of being 'unrealistic with your dreams' as he shared a poignant poem written by his school friend.
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he → praise → friend
The Star Wars actor was one of the last people to see the ten-year-old boy alive before he was fatally stabbed in Peckham, south-east London, in November 2000.
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he → see → November
They became friends at Oliver Goldsmith Primary School after Damilola moved from Nigeria a few months before his death, with both boys' families of Yoruba descent.
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Damilola → become → descent
Boyega, who lived on the same estate, has spoken about his friend in a new BBC documentary and revealed a poem Damilola wrote which they would recite together.
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they → live → which
The poem said: 'I will travel far and wide to choose my destiny and remould the world; I know it is my destiny to defend the world, which I hope to achieve in my lifetime.'
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I → say → lifetime
Damilola, who wanted to have a career in the medical profession, was killed by two boys aged 12 and 13 while on his way home from the library.
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who → want → library
He was found bleeding to death in a stairwell after being stabbed in the leg with a broken beer bottle.
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He → find → bottle
In an exclusive clip shared with the Daily Mail today, Boyega spoke about how Damilola's legacy had helped him push to achieve a successful career on screen.
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him → share → screen
The 34-year-old actor said: 'A few names that have come from Peckham have gone on to create and do amazing things, and when people ask me "what's in the water"?
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what → say → water
John Boyega speaks about his friend in the new BBC documentary'Damilola: The Untold Story'
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Boyega → speak → documentary'Damilola
Damilola Taylor was fatally stabbed just yards from his home in Peckham, south-east London
Damilola in a lift with John and Grace Boyega (blurred) in CCTV footage shortly before he died
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he → stab → footage
I always go, well, it seems to me as if it's a double-edged sword in a sense.
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it → go → sense
On one end you have - especially over those years - the extreme poverty, the lack of opportunity.
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you → have → opportunity
But on the other end, the reason why we are beneficiaries of such success is because there were individuals that noticed that.
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that → be → that
And if there is no sense of scaling, being better, aspiring for something more, then the fear that cripples this community can catch you.'
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that → be → you
Boyega, who was eight at the time of the death, added: 'The career I wanted has taken me all over the world.
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I → add → world
Damilola's legacy to me means being able to be unrealistic with your dreams.
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legacy → mean → dreams
He wrote a poem, we used to recite it all the time at Oliver Goldsmith School.
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we → write → School
Damilola didn't listen to the fear, he didn't.
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he → listen → fear
From that poem, he had plans and he honestly came across as if he didn't care about the environment that he was.
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he → have → environment
He was more so fixated on where he was going.
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he → fixate → ?
He also told the documentary that the prospect of being stabbed 'was a consistent thing in my mind' while growing up - saying: 'I'm going to be on Rye Lane, near the Peckham multiplex, opposite the McDonald's, and someone's going to come and do that to me.'
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someone → tell → me
Boyega also spoke about Damilola during an event at Bafta in London last month.
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Boyega → speak → London
Speaking alongside his sister Grace Boyega, who also knew Damilola and was ten at the time, he told the audience about youth violence in the area at the time.
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he → speak → time
Boyega said he was 'directly impacted and affected' by Damilola's killing as well as incidents involving others, adding: 'I came close to it myself a good few times.
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I → say → it
Grace came close to it herself, we grew up in a really interesting time.
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we → come → time
So, I just wanted people to see the journey and to see several different paths that such an event can lead to.
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event → want → that
John Boyega during a Q&A event for the new Damilola Taylor documentary at Bafta in London
(From left) Grace Boyega, Damilola's brother Tunde Taylor, John Boyega, director Alex Thomas, BBC presenter Tina Daheley and former Metropolitan Police superintendent Dr Leroy Logan
The panellists talk about Damilola Taylor during the event at Bafta in London on September 16
John Boyega was one of the last people who saw Damilola alive before the killing in 2000
Boyega also discussed how young he was at the time of Damilola's death, adding: 'It's been a short life but a long life for me because of the extremes of my experiences so far, both good and bad, they have been extremes.
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they → talk → experiences
Whether they've been incredibly low or incredibly high... it is a lot and it gives you a very big perspective on life.
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it → give → life
You've lived several different lives, even now at 34, it still feels like I've lived longer than that just because of what you've been exposed to and the experiences that you've been inspired by, all the experiences that have affected me in a negative way.
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that → live → way
'But all in all, it was good to watch this and remember that despite that, there was growth, which motivated me to take part in something that was a positive thing.
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that → watch → something
He said the documentary had helped him with remembering that 'it's always good to come back home, remember who you are, what grounds you and what the motivating factor for you to go to do what you did was in the first place'.
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you → say → place
Boyega added: 'Peckham, as much as there was that negativity there, I cannot help but highlight the people who got their bootstraps together and said 'I'm going to do what I can'.
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I → add → bootstraps
Regardless of where you go, remember your origin stories, because it will guide you through anywhere really.'
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it → go → you
Speaking about why he chose to talk about Damilola's stabbing in the documentary, Boyega also said: 'I guess I was pretty much inspired by the team that was put together and the intention behind it.
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that → speak → it
I know previously there had been several different documentaries about Damilola, all of which I watched, but I guess it just felt like the right time to talk about the origin story of not only this case, but a lot of people that were surrounding in that area.
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that → know → area
I think it was important for people to see what had happened and the effects of that situation, and it was packaged together really, really well.
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it → think → situation
Damilola was found bleeding to death in a stairwell in Peckham after being stabbed in the leg
Boyega became friends with Damilola at Oliver Goldsmith Primary School in Peckham
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Boyega → find → Peckham
I believe in the intention, I think this is quite a positive film, as well as it being informative, and I just wanted to support something that I felt like long-term would have a positive impact.
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term → believe → impact
Sitting alongside him, Grace added: 'It's hard because you have to unlock stuff that you've kept closed for so many years.
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you → sit → years
…and 20 more, not listed.
The Aporia
