Leading In A New Way

I honestly can't say that I'm disappointed.

My very first column that I actually wrote was entitled "The Day Kayfabe Died For Me". It highlighted the Booker T and Triple H feud heading into WrestleMania XIX in which a now infamous promo was used to get Booker rattled up heading into the big match. If you don't know what was said you can watch the promo here in its entirety; to save some time here he said to Booker "somebody like you doesn't get to be world champion". That's not the end of it, he goes on to say a whole bunch of other bullshit that still pisses me off to this day. But that promo pretty much tells just how the wrestling world as a whole feels about African Americans in the business. Before you say that's not the case and that The Rock is an example of that, I'd like to point out that no one else beyond The Rock truly has had the shot at the career he has had.

Booker T comes to mind when thinking about an African American who's managed to reach heights that come close to the rock and what he's been able to accomplish; but that's solely because of what he did prior to WWE(F) and what he was able to do because of the brand split. Booker T literally made shit into gold for the company, but when it came time to give him his just dues, they fall short every single time. If you don't believe me and think I'm all full of it, (or as the right would say in my liberal feelings), take a look at the promo here Triple H cut on Booker T on Raw as recent as 2015. That's fairly recent to say that those feelings have died here in 2016.

But what point I'm trying to make with bringing this back up?

Well over on Twitter, WWE Raw Tag Team Champions the New Day (Kofi Kingston, Big E and Xavier Woods), WWE Raw Women's Champion Sasha Banks and WWE Cruiserweight Champion Rich Swann all posted in a picture, with their respective titles and the caption read: "#BlackExcellence". Said picture received a ton of backlash and critics from fans. Now given the current climate of things in the real world, the issues that plague this country was bound to find its way into the realm of wrestling. After all, wrestling's success is predicated by what it can connect to with the fans. Gimmicks live and die with the audience for the simple fact that they are only going to cheer for the things that they like personally. I mean of course you have those few times when a wrestler gets a gimmick over because they are just THAT good. But in the real sense of it all, the fans control every single thing.
 

So why am I not surprised at this backlash to the picture? Because the fans that aren't African American will never truly understand what it means for them to be proud of what they've accomplished. I'm not a race baiter, I don't think any other race is better than the other one and I think everyone should have a fair shake at earning something. I always believed in the "may the best man win" saying, so it's dead if you think that I'm promoting our excellence over anyone else’s. African Americans simply never had the fair shake at things, all the while being fed the same dancing, thugged out, ghetto slang and rapping gimmicks. I could point out a whole slew of racial gimmicks such as:
 

Cryme Tyme

The God Father

Kamala

Teddy Long's constant usage of slang

Shelton Benjamin's "Mama"

Black Roddy Piper

Vince using the N word

And so forth and so forth. It doesn't even just stop at African American wrestlers, anyone who is a minority can attest to some of the things that they went through in the business as a whole. So, if you understand the frustrations of a group of people who represented on a constant basis as some kind of punch line, then you can understand the pride that those five had when they posted the picture. Don't confuse being able to achieve greatness in spite of what's happened to people like you basically since the start of professional wrestling. It's especially something special when you think about how New Day turned the same stereotypical gimmick into something more than what they were going to be. I'm especially proud of them because of that fact alone.

Instead of getting offended by what they think the words entail, people should do some research as to why they posted the picture. But since people like to point out that it's 2016, then they should just know that African Americans, and other people of color, have gotten the shitty end of the stick when it comes to pushes and things of the such. But to be honest that's asking way too many people to be decent enough to acknowledge that tidbit, (or not being lazy and research it if they didn't know at all); but just like in the real world, I don't expect as much from them. It's not my job to care about their feelings honestly, it's my job to continue to support all of the wrestlers who aren't getting their fair shakes due to whatever silly reason there may be; (hey Sami). But it's especially my job to uplift African American wrestlers because that's who I relate to the most. Because at the end of the day, representation matters and we're just trying to be represented properly.

Good job guys and gal; you've made me proud.
 

 

Here’s Kofi’s response in its entirety; it’s honestly the best response to this situation:

While much of the feedback has been positive, there has also been a lot of negative response with regard to the picture we posted illustrating Rich, Sasha, Xavier, E, and myself wielding our championship titles. Perhaps this is because many are in question of the motivation behind the post:
 

It does not come from a place of malice, spite, or gloating. It comes from a place of joy and a place of happiness. We have a very strong sense of pride in being the Black People simultaneously holding championships in WWE. Historically in our nation, there was period in time where this would not have happened, followed by a long period of time where it became possible, but had not actually materialized. Now, we are in the time in which the possibility has become a reality.

Why does this matter?

It matters because even though it is hard for some to fathom, the fact is that there are many people who feel as though it is impossible to attain certain goals because of the color of their skin. This is why we must acknowledge the color of ours in this instance. It is important for people of all races, but particularly people of color, and especially the youth, to see that it is entirely possible to achieve your dreams and aspirations regardless of your race. We are a shining example who want to be a source of motivation for others to believe in themselves and do the same.

Excellence is not the same as supremacy. #BlackExcellence is not meant to be divisive. For even if you do not fall into the specific category, you can still take enjoyment in our pride, because in the biggest picture, in a society that often focuses on the negative aspects of race relations, what has transpired with the 5 of us speaks positively to the progress we've made as a nation.