North Carolina High School Student Mocked For Wearing Ugly Sneakers, So His Classmate Does Something Awesome
A high school student from North Carolina just gave an awesome early Christmas present to one bullied classmate.
Yaovi Mawuli, a student from Greensboro, noticed that some kids in his French class were making fun of a student who wore some tattered sneakers. Mawuli, who calls himself a “sneakerhead” and is up on the latest fashion, decided to do something about the situation.
He picked up the classmate a pair of Air Jordan Concord Lows, then asked the Greensboro Sneakerheads Facebook group for a bit of advice on how to give them.
“I’m planning to give him a pair of Concord lows,” he posted. “Now my question is how do I present it to him without him feeling like I feel sorry for him? I’m just trying to help a brother out.”
In the end, Yaovi Mawuli found a good way to present the gift the classmate, and was even able to snap a Facebook picture.
Mawuli said he was tired of seeing classmates make fun of the student, who he said is a “cool guy.”
“I could not leave with the fact that such a cool guy would be made fun of in this way,” he said. “I remember I got made fun of for wearing some shoes that had 2006 on them while we were in year 2008. But nobody knew what I did to get that pair of shoes. I would cut my neighbors lawn and take out her trash and she would give me $20 which I save to buy in order to buy that pair of shoes. So I understand not everyone [is] fortunate enough to afford new pairs of sneakers.”
Mawuli’s gift to his classmate wasn’t exactly cheap, either. The shoes are listed online for $150, and are described as one of the most popular editions of the Air Jordan series.
“One of the most iconic and beloved Air Jordan models of all time, the Air Jordan 11 followed MJ’s insight of bringing a formal look to the court, using patent leather for the first time in an athletic shoe,” the description read.
Though it may have been meant as a goodwill gesture between classmates, Yaovi Mawuli has now gone viral for his act. As stories of bullying and student misconduct dominate the news, his heartwarming story was picked up by news outlets nationwide and even voted to the top of Reddit’s Uplifting News subreddit.
Many of the posters there took note of Mawuli’s act of kindness — and how much it cost him.
“I mean the fact that he gave him a pair of concords. Some of the most rare and exclusive Jordan 11’s,” one commenter wrote. “He could have just given him some nice nikes but he gave him his concords. The same shoe that caused riots back when it was released in the mid 2000’s. That boy has heart.”
Yaovi Mawuli got more than just accolades for his act of kindness. A news report said he and the once-bullied student have now struck up a friendship.
[Image via Facebook]
