Nadiya Hussain has opened up about the horrific racist abuse that her children are subjected to.
The Great British Bake Off winner, 37, has explained how she 'never imagined' her kids would grow up without experiencing racism, but still sometimes struggles to know how to 'handle' it at times.
Nadiya and her husband Abdal Hussain share three children together; sons, Musa, 15, and Dawud, 14, and a daughter, Maryam, 11.
Speaking with OK! magazine, the TV chef has revealed has the disgusting abuse she and her family suffer at times.
The cooking sensation began by explaining she always knew her children would one day experience racism, because like her 'they are a minority.
"I’ve never said to my kids, 'This is what’s going to happen to you,' but when it has happened I’ve been there for them, I’ve consoled them and shared my own experiences," she told the publication.
The mum-of-three added: "As a parent, you are flummoxed because you think, 'How am I supposed to handle this? How am I supposed to give my children this image of this world that is wonderful and beautiful, when the reality is that it’s not going to be easy, it’s going to be difficult?'
Nadiya then went on to state how she and her family share something that is 'unique' to them, because their opportunities 'will be different' to that of their English counterparts.
"Whether that’s jobs, wages, you name it, everything will be different for them," the second-generation British Bangladeshi star explained.
"But when issues arise I like to think that my kids know that they have a safe place with their mum and dad to come and talk about these differences.
"We keep an open mind and we talk about it a lot."
This isn't the first time Nadiya has spoken out about the racism she endures.
Speaking in 2020 - five years on from winning The Great British Bake Off - the TV chef revealed she has suffered an increase in racist abuse aimed towards her since becoming a household name.
"Just because you don’t experience racism, doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist, it does!" Nadiya wrote to her Instagram followers in June 2020.
"I have experienced more racism in five years working in the TV/Food industry than any other time of my life and it’s time to call it out!"
The star did not expand on the incidents she has experienced when sharing her story in the wake of the Black Lives Matter movement gaining momentum across the world at the time.
Nadiya added the hashtag '#CallRacismOut' at the end of her powerful Instagram caption.
In 2016 - one year on from being crowned champion in the Bake Off tent - the cookbook author admitted she now expects racial abuse, after experiencing it so often in her life.
"I’ve had things thrown at me and [been] pushed and shoved. I feel like that’s just become a part of my life now. I expect it. Absolutely I expect it," she recalled to Radio 4 host Kirsty Young.
"I expect to be shoved or pushed or verbally abused because that happens. It’s been happening for years."
She went on to explain how she deals with the abuse by refusing to retaliate negatively - instead opting to be the "better person".
"I feel like there’s a dignity in silence and I think if I retaliate to negativity with negativity then we’ve evened out," the mum-of-three stated.
"And I don’t need to even that out because if somebody’s being negative, I need to be the better person."
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