Irish RTE presenter suffers racist abuse online - being called a 'n****r' and told she 'looks like a monkey'

AN IRISH television presenter has suffered a torrent of horrendous racist abuse after being told she looks "like a monkey" by online trolls.

Zainab Boladale, 23, from Co Clare, who speaks fluent Irish revealed she has been subjected to horrific abuse on Youtube while working in the RTE newsroom on the children’s weekday news2day show.

The Nigerian-born Irishwoman, who moved to Ennis, Co Clare when she was four-years-old, also spoke of how the abuse had affected her mental health.

Zainab took to social media to post photos of the abuse she'd received, which included online users calling her a "n****r" and telling her to "get the f**k out of Celtic lands!"

On Twitter, she wrote: "For months and months, a YouTube channel constantly compiled videos of me from my account/social/TV etc.

"When I used to write articles they’d post it on racist forums - Talking about racism when you’re a POC is tiring because the experience feels overwhelming.

For months and months, a YouTube channel constantly compiled videos of me from my account/social/TV etc. When I used to write articles they’d post it on racist forums - Talking about racism when you’re a POC is tiring because the experience feels overwhelming. pic.twitter.com/xSxgbQ6RIv

— Zainab Boladale (@ZainabBoladale) November 16, 2019

"After months of reporting the channel - YouTube finally took it down (I’m guessing others featured on that channel complained too).

"This very summer I had belittling comments said to my face while out on a report - which took a huge toll on my mental health!

"I’ve been asked a lot and I refuse to talk about what is racist and what isn’t, because guess what? If a marginalized group of people feel hurt by an act/statement...you already have your answer."

Some of the vile comments aimed in her direction also included one user saying she "looks like a monkey, ape, gorilla."

Another said: "Consider yourself Irish all you want but you are Nigerian."

The 23-year-old has however received plenty of support from sympathetic followers, while RTE’s legal affairs correspondent Orla O’Donnell called the racism "shameful" and "shocking."