CHI-KAR-A! CHI-KAR-A!

The CHIKARA show I attended - "Ring of Wax"

I was able to cross another thing off my "bucket list" on Saturday August 18th. That's the day I traveled up to Indianapolis to see my first live CHIKARA show. I went, despite only knowing a few of the on-going story lines and there being only a few matches that featured people I wanted to see.

I was NOT disappointed. Not in the slightest. I loved it. From top to bottom, every match was great to fantastic, there was a ton of positive energy in the building, and there has rarely been a wrestling show that has made me laugh and smile so much as CHIKARA did. It's not often you see a promotion that successfully mixes a child-friendly atmosphere with adult story lines, but CHIKARA has done just that. At this particular show, I saw the Batiri frighten children, "The Kentucky Gentleman" Chuck Taylor get mad at kids taunting him, but also saw Mike Quackenbush snap on 17, hitting several Quackendrivers on him causing the match to be thrown out for excessive violence. I also saw some...unique maneuvering by Harlem Bravado on Eddie Kingston that was a bit sexual. (Not that I was complaining - I found Harlem to be particularly easy on the eyes.) So although it was geared towards children, the show was by and large not cartoony or unenjoyable for adults. It was a great mix.

The experience was made even better by the company of two friends who had driven from Wisconsin and Chicago respectively, Ayzali and Chris. They filled me in when I had questions and in some cases helped me overcome my shyness to meet a few of the wrestlers. (When I say "helped" I mean "literally pushed" *cough*AYZALI*cough*) Wrestling is always better when shared in the company of friends, and I'm so glad they made the trip!

I'm not going to give an official review of "Ring of Wax", and instead give overall thoughts on some of the wrestlers, the matches and my experience.

I arrived right at 7, when the show was scheduled to start, but fortunately for me it didn't start right at 7. As a consequence I didn't get to buy any merch beforehand but I knew at some point they would have a brief intermission so I wasn't fussed. The first match was The Batiri (Obariyon, Kodama and Kobald) versus the Swarm (deviANT and combatANT) and Soldier Ant. I'm not sure why Soldier was teaming (he did have a piece of tape around his arm that said P.O.W.) with the Swarm but he did his best to win. Unfortunately the lack of team work undid them but it was a fast paced match that set the tone right off the bat. He refused to follow any of their orders, yelling "Sir, no sir!" several times, and the crowd chanted "P.O.W! P.O.W!" - it was great fun! At the end, Soldier stood alone and smartly saluted the crowd.

Saturyne and I.

The second match featured one of the people I'd most wanted to see in person - Saturyne. She wrestled Tim Donst in a match that she almost won with the CHIKARA Special, but his strength was too much. However, despite being relatively new from the Wrestle Factory where CHIKARA trains people, she looked amazing! Her speed, creative moves, and energy got the crowd behind her and she was fantastic to watch. I don't know who is under the mask, if it's someone already established or someone in their rookie year (and I don't want to know! There's so little mystery left in wrestling!), but she has impressed in her matches so far. Here's hoping she continues to grow and improve.

Oh and Tim Donst is a jerk.

The third had yet another person I'd wanted to see - The Mysterious and Handsome Stranger. No one knows much about him, except that he's tall, a cowboy, handsome and very mysterious. He's also very athletic, wrestling and beating one half of the Bravado Brothers, Lancelot. There was an old fashioned gun draw, horse back riding (with Lance playing the part of the horse), a lasso and a pigeon! There was also great wrestling, of course, with the Stranger continuing his winning streak. Lancelot learned to never mess with a man's pigeon.

I'd never seen the Bravado Brothers before, period, and both of them were impressive. Consider me part of the Bravado Bandwagon. I'd see Harlem later.

17 and the Shard wrestled Mike Quackenbush and Jigsaw. This was another that I wasn't sure of the back story, except that the former two are part of GEKIDO, and hence the rudos. I never expected to see Quack snap though, which he did, driving 17 repeatedly into the mat with his version of a driver. Jigsaw was highly upset with his partner - leaves me wondering what will happen with Quack, if GEKIDO has some sort of plan to get underneath his skin. Again, fantastic match, and it was a pleasure to finally see Mike Quackenbush in person. He is phenomenal.

Darin Corbin and Arik Cannon I had heard of from their work in ACW and St. Louis Anarchy but, again, not seen them before. They wrestled the Spectral Envoy, consisting of Hallowicked and UltraMantis Black. This match was completely awesome - not only are all 4 great wrestlers but it had one of the BEST spots I'd ever seen. Somehow Arik slowed down time and all of them wrestled in slow motion.

You read that right. Slow. Motion. Wrestling. YAY. It was awesome and they really did move in slow motion, even moves I didn't think they'd be able to (due to gravity). The crowd started a "This is awesome" chant...in slow motion. Chris told me they did a similar spot on Friday's show that lasted for five minutes. This one didn't last as long but it was fantastic. All four shook hands afterwards, which personally I like as a fan. It's the little things.

I think at this point we took the intermission. It was either before or after this match. I was chatting with Chris and Ayzali when someone caught my eye. My jaw dropped as I watched this person stride across the room towards a table that had been set up, casting a dismissive glare at someone who dared tried to razz them.

It was Mr. Touchdown's main squeeze, the vicious, devastating, beautiful Veronica. Tall, breath taking, she owned the entire room as she strode across it. And I knew she was tall but her legs rival Stacy Keibler's. Seriously. Apparently I zoned out to the point that only the flash of Ayzali's camera broke through. She claimed my expression was so funny that she had to take a picture. They urged me to go talk to her, sometimes she gracious enough to talk to fans. I had my doubts. Here I was, a shy, awkward nerd of the type that Mr. Touchdown frequently expressed contempt for. How could I dare approach someone on a higher social level? How could I dare step foot into the shadow of greatness that was the majorette, the mistress of the baton? I couldn't!

Instead, I contented myself with purchasing a Saturyne mask and getting to take a photo with her. She was very kind, accepting my compliments on her work. I also witnessed Ophidian elbow drop a Sugar Dunkerton sticker that a cute little girl had given him - an action Sugar didn't take kindly to. He fell to the floor by the sticker, yelling, "I will avenge you!" Confronting the serpent, the Egyptian creature slithered away before he could be trounced. Sugar consoled the poor girl by taking a picture with her and the freshly restored sticker. A happy ending for everyone!

Chris was sweet enough to buy me the CHIKARA DVD that featured Satomura vs. Sara Del Rey, although he had an ulterior motive. I was keeping busy by looking through all the wares for sale (in the process almost making a horrible blunder - before purchasing the Saturyne mask I almost asked a tall gentleman behind the counter how much it was...I began, "How much is.." and stopped short. The handsome man wasn't a regular CHIKARA crew member. It was the Kentucky Gentleman, Chuck Taylor. I switched gears in mid-sentence and recovered by finishing, "your t-shirt?" He answered me and when he turned to another fan I retreated. Dear Lord. I could've just melted into the carpet. I was so embarrassed, and I'm pretty sure neither Chris nor Ayzali will let me live this down anytime soon...), and my desire to find and buy that DVD was another roadblock keeping me from approaching Veronica. With that hurdle cleared thanks to Chris, I had no other reasonable excuse to not talk to her. At some point, shyness stopped being a reasonable excuse. Ayzali finally pushed me into approaching her.

She greeted me with a dazzling smile. And what do I do? Blurt out a hello and the first thing I was thinking, "You're beautiful!" The lovely majorette smiled and thanked me.

Cue awkward silence.

Thank GOD for Ayzali! She asked for an autographed picture of Veronica, and offered to buy one for me as well. As she was writing out the autograph for me, she asked, "Do I follow you on Twitter..?" I said that yes, she did and I was PocketVolcano. She looked up, her eyes wide and said she had thought she recognized me but wasn't sure. I told her that I had seen her room mate, Sammy, at Girls Night Out 7 two weeks ago and asked her to pass along a hello for me. Veronica said she remembered, and that for once her friend hadn't forgotten to pass a message to her. Room mates can be hard to live with, and Sammy's exploits when Veronica was away could get quite out of hand. She told us that she had warned Sammy she better not return to find a mess made by her pet squirrel. Somehow, I think that warning may have gone unheeded...

Nonetheless, by this time intermission was wrapping up and she had to get to the back to help Mr. Touchdown prepare for the Young Lions Cup final. She thanked me again and to my delight gave me a hug. Fairly certain I floated back to my chair. It turns out Veronica is one of those rare breeds: a lady on the upper social level who extends her hand to a select few on the nerd level. My only regret is that I neglected to ask for a picture with her, but the memory is enough.

The first bout back from intermission was a non-title match between the CHIKARA Grand Champion Eddie Kingston and the other half of the Bravado Brothers, Harlem. Harlem looks to be as tall as Lancelot, but with nice blonde hair, a cute face and great build. In other words, VERY easy on the eyes. Most fans probably did not expect him to be much of a match for Eddie, but he put up a good fight, going down to a Backfist to the Future. During the match, someone from the crowd yelled something to Kingston, who asked him to repeat it. I couldn't make it out but it appeared the person in question either used to work for Kingston, or with him, as a manager in a convenience store I believe. The words "grilled cheese" were thrown out...which started a "grilled cheese" chant from the crowd. As you do. There was also a "we'll say anything" chant, and a "YES" chant (which thoroughly annoyed Chris and Ayzali, but I took part in with gusto). A few times Harlem grinned as if he couldn't help himself, which was very cute.

After the match, I tweeted "Hey Harlem Bravado! I just met you - and this is crazy - but here's my number, so call me maybe?" minus his Twitter handle. I didn't follow him at the time (as I'd heard of him but not seen his work until that night), and he didn't follow me either. Yet not even an hour later both Lance and Harlem had re-tweeted my tweet. I wasn't sure whether to be embarrassed or amused - I wound up being both. No matter!

The match following Kingston/Harlem was an eight man tag team match. Due to a sudden death in the family, Johnny Gargano wasn't able to make it to the shows, so he had to be replaced. (So sorry for your loss Johnny!) We saw the Colony (Fire Ant & Green Ant) teaming with 3.0 (Scott Parker and Shane Matthews) to face the other two members of F.I.S.T. Icarus & the Kentucky Gentleman Chuck Taylor, plus the replacement Ophidian and...Sugar Dunkerton? This confused me, as Sugar isn't a rudo like the others. However, it made for a fantastically fun match!

There was dancing, shenanigans, TWO Green Ants and a grenade that Shane Matthews heroically swallowed - then had to immediately run to the restroom! He was gone for a good 10 minutes, fortunately his stomach didn't explode. I can safely say that Icarus has the ugliest yet most fascinating back tattoo I've ever seen. He also looks like a jerk. One wonders if he realizes what happened to Icarus in Greek mythology. Certainly doesn't bode well for him. (A friend told me while I was writing this that he got the tattoo AFTER he took the name. Major respect, that's dedication!) I'd been a fan of Sugar Dunkerton's before but now safe to say I'm a fan for life. His energy and passion are incredible. This match, like the others, was pure fun.

The main event, however, started out with some silliness, but soon turned intense. The Young Lions Cup is a prestigious cup, given to the winner of a tournament in CHIKARA. This year it came down to two newcomers to the promotion: Mr. Touchdown and ACH. I knew of ACH from Anarchy Championship Wrestling, but had only seen one match featuring him and that was a multiple man tag team match. As a result I only got a taste of what he was capable of. Given all the hype, however, I was excited. Touchdown I had seen at the last iPPV for the first time, tagging with Dasher Hatfield against Mixed Martial Archie and Colt Cabana.

Chants for ACH highly irritate Veronica & Touchdown.

Honestly? Words cannot describe how utterly awesome this match was. Every time I thought one of them had the pin, the other would kick out. They took each other to the absolute limit. It was fantastic. Dasher at one point, when TD was trying to cheat, interrupted and ordered him to do this by the book. Think of Dasher as the little angel on TD's shoulder - and Veronica being the little devil on the other. But after trying to distract the ref, Dasher took matters - and Veronica herself! - into his hands. Literally. He put poor Veronica into a nearby trash can! It was awful! A lady like her being not only forcibly ejected but then sullied by being placed into a receptacle for disposable waste! The nerve of Mr. Hatfield! The shame of it all!

Despite this gross, heinous act, Touchdown ultimately got the pin, the cup and the girl. He left Dasher in the cold, exulting in his victory. Both combatants got a standing ovation, and ACH got his name chanted as he exited last. As Gavin re-entered the ring to thank the crowd for coming, we all chanted, "Please come back! Please come back!" I sincerely hope CHIKARA does. Afterwards, some of the roster came out again to sell merch, take photos and talk with the fans. The Colony were so good with the kids! Outside the doors, near the steps that took you down to the exit, Soldier Ant was saluting everyone, Sugar was shaking hands and the man himself, Mike Quackenbush was greeting and thanking fans for coming. Chris said he rarely comes out after a show, but since it was a debut in a new city, he wanted to show his appreciation. I was the last one lucky enough to get a photo with him and to thank him for helping create CHIKARA.

Upon exiting the building, the three of us went to a local place and had (soft) drinks and chatted about the show. I wound up not leaving Indianapolis until 1 a.m.-ish - and after dropping Ayzali and Chris off at their car, I promptly got lost downtown. Despite using a GPS. Fail! I didn't get home until 3 a.m.

Overall impressions: I loved it. Every match was awesome, I could tell everyone was putting all they had into the show. They wanted to make their Indianapolis debut spectacular and they fully succeeded to me. It wasn't overly cartoonish, there was appeal for both kids and adults, and there was amazing wrestling. What I particularly noticed was something that Ayzali pointed out later - the positive energy. I could feel it grow as the show went on, there was a spectacular vibe reverberating between the crowd and the wrestlers. It was as if we were all feeding off one another and sharing it. You really could not help but get into things - the chanting, the cheering, the mayhem. It was unlike anything I'd ever experienced. Sure, SHIMMER has fun moments during various matches, but what I felt with CHIKARA was different. It was light-hearted, fun and...I want to say didn't take itself too seriously, but that seems wrong. Everyone took their matches and characters seriously. But at the same time, everyone just had fun.

'Lightning' Mike Quackenbush and I.

CHIKARA is good, plain fun.

On a roster of so much talent, I want to single out a few. Everyone deserves praise and recognition, absolutely, but this post is long enough! I've always thought that, being one of the people to help create CHIKARA, Mike Quackenbush is the spirit of the promotion. His drive, energy and passion for wrestling keep it going, and it also pushes him to constantly think up new twists and turns. I've heard great things about their training program, and with Quack at the helm, it's safe to say the students there are in good hands. Honorable, intelligent, progressive and forward thinking, he has created something unique and wonderful with CHIKARA - and I thank him for that.

Sugar Dunkerton.

If Quackenbush is the spirit of CHIKARA, then Sugar Dunkerton is it's heart. I have followed him on Twitter for awhile now, and after seeing him in person, he is one of the most positive people I have ever seen. He has a ton of energy that poured out of him all throughout the show, he was constantly cracking jokes and smiling. It was amazing. He had had an injury that kept him out for awhile this year, but he looks to be back and even better than before. He, too, has a drive and love for wrestling that keeps him motivated. I have honestly never seen him tweet a negative thought. I hope he stays in wrestling for a good long time - in a business that can be really ugly, Sugar D shines as one of it's brightest people.

The Colony are not only great wrestlers, but unique characters as well. I admit, when I first started watching CHIKARA, I was skeptical about giant ants. But they are some of the backbones of the place, combining character with skill with charisma - proving that masks sometimes are a help and not a hindrance. The kids simply loved them, there were so many wearing their masks and cheering them on, it was adorable. Soldier Ant in particular was hilarious, but it was a really nice touch to have him saluting as everyone left.

ACH - Attitude. Charisma. Heart. Bank on it. This man is the complete and total package. Watch his stuff, it speaks volumes. I seriously cannot do the man justice with any words.

If CHIKARA comes anywhere near Louisville, or to the city itself, I will do my utmost best to attend the show. It is worth the drive to experience this and I HIGHLY recommend if they come near you to go. It's an unbelievable experience that, personally, helped remind me of the good that is in professional wrestling. CHIKARA is worth supporting, so go to the shows and buy the DVDs! I promise, you won't regret it.

Thank you for an amazing time. HUGE thank you to Chris and Ayzali for being there, it made the experience 10 times better!

CHI-KAR-A! CHI-KAR-A!

AIW's Girls Night Out 7 and My Weekend with Sassy

Shenanigans! Courtney Rush v Veda Scott

This isn't going to be your 'traditional' review. Since this was only my fourth independent wrestling show, I'm going to write about my trip as well as the show itself. The whole thing was very fascinating, since I'd been invited to stay with a friend who was competing on the show: one Sassy Stephanie. She offered to let me stay at her house which was incredibly generous of her and as a result, I got a glimpse into the life of a professional wrestler. This is solely the view of a fan who is also a friend of some of the women, and by no means am I claiming to "be in the know" about the business or claiming to be part of the business. I have no "insider knowledge." I'm just a fan who now has a better appreciation of the life independent wrestlers live.

Thanks to something that came up right before I left, my departure was delayed and I didn't actually leave Louisville until 5 p.m. So I didn't get to Sassy's house until about 10 or 11p.m. Once I got there, she made pancakes for us (which was the first time I'd ever had home made pancakes instead of frozen - they were delicious!) and we watched some of the shows she had recorded during the week. Before I went to sleep she made me watch "A Christmas Story", a movie I had actually avoided for years. I couldn't tell you why. But since we were going to the Christmas Story house Saturday before the show, she forced me to watch it. No, seriously, I was tied to the couch with those little eye pincher things that kept my eyes open. It was torture! Kidding, I actually liked it. She also showed me her luggage that she had already packed for the weekend - since she had a show on Saturday and Sunday, she was prepared with one huge suitcase, a backpack for her gimmicks, plus video equipment. All in all it was a huge amount of stuff she needed for the shows. This wasn't unusual, Steph informed me. She had to be prepared with her outfits, makeup, regular clothing, plus merchandise like shirts, programs, photos, etc. She couldn't afford to forget anything.

Saturday she got me up at 10 so I could shower before we had to leave. "The Wrestling Goddess" Athena was flying in and Steph was picking her up from the airport. Before we left the house, Diana (Steph's best friend) came over as she would be going to the shows and helping with merchandise as well. All three of us piled into my mini-SUV and we got to the airport just as Athena arrived. I thought this was really cool and a true pleasure - I'd donated to the fundraiser to get Athena to Girls Night Out 7 and here I was getting to hang out with her.

Athena is not only a fantastic wrestler and a great personality but the woman behind the character is utterly hilarious. She had me in stitches the whole day! Even though she hadn't seen "A Christmas Story" either she knew enough about it to know about the items in the house that were interactive. When we got to the house, all of us took part in the various things, such as dressing up in the pink bunny suits, pleading for Ralphie's life whilst under the sink, posing with the Ryder BB gun and the leg lamp, and trying on the various hats that were worn in the movie. It was a lot of fun!

Sassy took us to Melt's, which had great food. During the whole time, I tried never to be a pest or ask too many questions - I remembered that I was Steph's friend but also a fan that was outside the business. Plus, I wagered Athena and her didn't get to hang out very much so I wanted to keep to the background as much as I could. From Melt's we went to the venue, and I got to see what happens during an independent show before it actually starts. I helped Steph set up her table and I helped her out with something else she wanted done during her match with Athena. (Right before we went into the house, she got a notification that Leah Von Dutch and Cherry Bomb weren't going to be at the show, so she would be wrestling Athena.) I talked to Veda and Mia before the show started but mostly kept to the side watching everyone set up and the women go through their paces in the ring.

Eventually the show got under way and I was treated to my first Absolute Intense Wrestling experience. The first match was Athena v Sassy Stephie, which, I thought, should have been higher on the card because of the caliber of the athletes. Nonetheless, the two had a great match, Sassy throwing in some great lines during it. When Athena hit her finisher, the "O Face", the crowd popped huge. She got a "please come back" chant afterwards, which was most deserved. Despite thinking they should've been higher on the card, it was a fantastic way to kick the show off.

Thunderkitty (left) v Trash Cassidy (right)

Thunderkitty took on Trash Cassidy in TK's debut match. This was only Trash's second appearance for AIW, and given that I was unfamiliar with both, I went into this one completely blind. Thunderkitty's gimmick is that she is an "old time" wrestler and she is playing it to the hilt. The one piece outfit, her language, her personal ring announcer, coming out to no music - it all works brilliantly and makes her stand out. Trash...I'm still not too clear on her gimmick, other than she wears a lot of different colouring clothing to go along with her multi-coloured hair. Although she did throw out a great line: "I didn't know I was wrestling Mildred Burke!" The match was decent, but Trash got a "please don't come back" chant afterwards. Ouch.

AIW's first female tag team match was next, and it was due to the lobbying of Annie Social's manager Sammy Geodollno that made this match happen in the first place. She recruited Nikki St. John (also making her AIW debut) to team with Annie and they faced off against Heidi Lovelace and the returning Angel Dust. Right off the bat, something was screwy as Heidi kept looking at her phone before the match, and the two times Angel tagged her in, Heidi would hit a move and tag back out, the last time being after Angel had taken a beating from Social and Nikki. The match was good, both teams worked well together. The reason for Heidi's actions became clear afterwards when she hit Angel with a sweet enziguri and joined up with the three. The new all-female stable is known as "The Social Network" and Sammy looks to be their mouth piece from now on.

The manager with the Philly Swagger is looking to make a statement with her group. Sammy may be new to the managing scene but she looks to be someone to watch out for in the future. I had seen Angel on a previous GNO show DVD and thought she was a good worker. Although I don't care for Annie Social, I do admit her character is better than her wrestling. She's still just passable in the ring. Nikki I had seen in a SPARKLE match in March and had thought she was good; here, she worked well with Social as a partner and the other two women as opponents. Heidi looked good as well - overall, I look forward to seeing more out of all of them, especially the new stable, in the future.

Melanie Cruise v Kimber Lee looked like it was going to be a one-sided affair but Kimber actually got in some good looking offense and won with a roll up after Melanie missed a top rope leg drop. I've seen Cruise at SHIMMER and she's good for her size. This was my first time seeing Kimber, and after hearing so much about her, I can see why people are talking. She's one to watch going forward. (I realize I keep saying this was my first time seeing a lot of these girls, knowing most of them were booked on previous AIW shows. In my defense, I've only seen GNO 4 and didn't have time to watch the others before Saturday!)

Under Pondo Rules (which meant no DQ, no count outs, falls count anywhere) "Crazy" Mary Dobson fought Lil' Naughty, another woman making her AIW debut. I hadn't ever heard of 'Lil Naughty, but Dobson I'd seen a lot of hype for, mostly in conjunction with the hardcore style of wrestling. Which is the type of match that happened here. There must have been hundreds of thumb tacks that were spread out in the ring, some of which went into Dobson's own mouth as well as her head and other body parts. She got the pin after spreading some of the tacks onto Naughty's stomach, then doing a senton onto her. Dobson was bleeding heavily from the forehead after this match.

I'm going to be completely honest: I did not care for this match at all. I don't mind hardcore style matches as long as they have a purpose and a storyline behind them - for instance, WSU's feuds usually build up and climax with a match that has uncensored rules (i.e. no rules). This was two people with no prior history that I was aware of (which, if I'm wrong, I hope someone corrects me) put into a match that had no back story, hence no actual reason for a "Pondo Rules" stipulation. If you're into random hardcore matches, this would've been great for you, but I'm not. Dobson has competed in REINA in Japan, and it's no easy task to be invited to train and compete anywhere in Japan. I would have liked to see more of what she learned over there as far as in-ring skill goes. Apparently she is scheduled to go back to REINA soon, hopefully this will expand her repertoire and she can start easing out of the hardcore-style matches. It's an easy way to make a name for yourself, but given that she is only 18 years old, doing that type of match can take a toil on your body later in life. Just ask LuFisto. Plus, is it really wise to have thumb tacks shoved in your mouth? Some of them were bent, granted, but some were not.

On a side note, at some point, Mary flung a few tacks into the audience where I was sitting. That was rather unnecessary. I found one embedded in my shoe Monday before I went to work - definitely the most unique souvenir I've ever gotten from a wrestling show.

Veda setting up for the kill.

After this, however, was one of the matches that sold me on coming to GNO7 - Veda Scott, with her client in AIW Gregory Iron, versus the "Suplex Machine" Courtney Rush. I expected shenanigans in this match and I got them in spades. Not to mention damn good wrestling. Rush presented Veda with a note that she supposedly signed, stating that Veda would agree to not sue Rush if she suffered any injuries after being suplexed. When Veda examined the paper up close (as she wasn't wearing her glasses), Rush smacked her through the paper. It was on after that. I knew Scott was a heel everywhere except SHIMMER and SHINE, but this was the first time I'd seen her as a heel in person. She was devious, sneaky and absolutely aggressive. Her aggression and Courtney's high energy made for a fabulous mix and it confirmed what I knew as soon as the match was announced - they worked incredibly well together and made for a great bout. Veda pulled out the win thanks to Gregory Iron's repeated interference but Rush got a "please come back!" chant from the crowd. All in all, one of the best matches on the card.

Sara applies the Royal Butterfly on Hailey.

The match following was the other that sold me on attending, considering the news that has been making the rounds. In a return match (a sequel to the one they had on a previous GNO show), Hailey Hatred took on Sara Del Rey. I'm a huge fan of both ladies, and considering the news about Del Rey, this would likely be one of the last times I could see her in person. I knew these two would put on a doosy and they did just that. It was twenty minutes of hard hitting awesomeness. If this is truly Sara's "farewell tour" then it was altogether fitting that she faced Hatred at AIW. They did not disappoint me at all. It was a privilege to see them in person.

Between this match and the main event, there was an intermission where the women came out to sell their merchandise, take pictures and have a chat with the fans. During this time, I moved away from where I'd been sitting (behind the table where Steph had set up shop) and took the time to buy a Kings of Wrestling shirt from Del Rey (her line was massive!) and tell her how appreciative I was of her work and thank her for helping make female wrestling respectable again. She seemed really pleased by the compliment, and I meant it - she's one of the women I consider the originators of the revolution in female wrestling, who helped make it respectable and showed that women are every bit as good as men.

"My fave little volcano" - that's me!

I also chatted with Courtney and congratulated her on her match. Plus I got a signed picture of her with one of the best inscriptions: "To Jenn, my fave little volcano!" Mostly however I hung back to observe everyone interacting and to watch the cage being put together. It was coloured a light pink, which was a nice touch I thought, and really high. I'd never seen a cage match live, so I had no way of knowing if it was a higher cage than most, but it looked like it. One thing I noticed, all the women were polite and great with their fans, but they also doubled as their own saleswomen. Which, they have to in order to supplement the pay they get from the promoter for working the show. Sometimes that extra money can make all the difference in the world. The women can't rely on others to always be there to help promote them, they have to be their own best promoter and spokeswomen. At the same time, they never came off as needy or pushy, they struck the right balance with the fans.

Mia kicked the shit outta Allysin.

As a thank you for me buying their lunch, Athena let me pick from the DVDs she had for sale and offered a discount on her "Team Athena" shirt which I thought was generous of her. I picked up the "Best of Athena Volume 2" seeing as I had Volume 1 already. Then it was time for the cage match and let me say that any cage matches I see in the future will have to try their very best to measure up to this one. Mia Yim and Allysin Kay's rivalry had grown since GNO5, after Yim broke Kay's nose, and Kay wanted to beat Mia without any interference from Flexor Industries, so what better way to keep things one on one than by putting them into a cage?

This match was utterly amazing. It kept fans on the edge of their seat by utilizing the cage just enough to make the spots mean something without overdoing it. Both wrestled extremely well, took risks and gave fans something special. The end came when both were at the top of the cage and Kay had Mia locked in a reverse jujigatame while dangling over the side. It was an incredible finish which had me praying for both women's safety. They earned a standing ovation from the crowd, one they fully deserved.

Scariest. Woman. Alive.

A few words about both women, this was the second time I'd seen Allysin Kay live, the first time being at SPARKLE. I thought she did well then, and given that in WSU there's more of a focus on her as a destructive force than on her wrestling skills, I was looking forward to seeing what she would do here. I'm convinced now that there is a lot of depth to Kay - not only does she have the character, the attitude and the charisma down pat, but she has a range in her that I've seen with Stephanie as well. Both can do the brawling, beat down style that we've seen in WSU, but both are also great when it comes to technical wrestling. It's tremendous to see another woman that is capable of having all types of skills.

Choke out on the top of the cage!

Mia Yim is a woman whose career I've followed since her SPARKLE debut in September 2010. She was still a rookie at that time but her progress since then has been simply amazing. She has several stints in Japan under her belt, which helped sharpen and broaden her skills, and has made an impact in several promotions such as Combat Zone Wrestling (taking part in the first intergender TLC match against Greg Excellent which she won), SHIMMER, Anarchy Championship Wrestling, Ring of Honor (granted, more as Prince Nana's valet than a wrestler but still, it's big considering ROH has a television show), and AIW. It is remarkable how much she has grown as a character and a wrestler, yet she remains the sweet, down to earth, unpretentious woman I met two years ago. Every time I see her, she gets better and better and I always make it a point to tell her how proud I am of her. Plus, she just recently graduated from college, like Steph, and being a student as well as a wrestler is no easy task. The sky is the limit for Mia.

Me, Courtney Rush and Sara Del Rey. Thank you.

After the show, I watched as the wrestlers (male and female) helped take apart the cage, the ring, the guard rails and everything else related to the show. Some fans stuck around to chat with a few of the wrestlers, but most cleared out allowing the women time to breathe and talk with each other. For most, they would be on the road again in hours, going on little sleep to get to the next destination for a show (such as Steph and Athena, who had an early flight back to Texas for an ACW show on Sunday). Yet they still took the time to talk to catch up. I talked with Veda and complimented her on the match with Courtney, and then was fortunate enough to get a photo with both Del Rey and Rush - a picture I will treasure.

Last notes on the show itself: overall, I thoroughly enjoyed my first AIW show. The majority of the matches were great, everyone worked hard to put on a great show, everyone from the wrestlers to the behind the scenes people were friendly, and the atmosphere was good. The audio was clear for the ring announcer and other in-house announcements, the building was a good, open space and there was enough room it felt like.

The only drawbacks I saw were how quiet the crowd was. A lot of women got no reaction at times, despite them doing their best to engage the crowd. They popped at times and the last three matches got good to great reactions, but on the whole it was quieter than I expected. One thing that was both a plus and a minus was the fact that some of the male talent were in the audience trying to make noise and get the crowd going. I was impressed by this, as it showed that the guys wanted to help the women succeed and make the show even better. However, with any audience, there is always that "one guy" who has to make inappropriate remarks. This time, it was someone who sat in front of me. I thought from the way he interacted with others that he was part of the AIW roster, but the owner informed me that only two male workers were at the show and both were sitting by the front door. My apologies for the false information!

Overall, I highly recommend buying Girls Night Out 7 and attending an AIW show at one point. You won't be disappointed.

After the show we drove through the rain to a nearby Dennys, where we were joined by some of the crew and wrestlers. I stayed quiet mostly, laughing at the stories being shared and watching the shared camaraderie. Despite being tired, everyone looked like they were in good spirits - well, everyone except for the hostess who had to accomodate a large number of people at a late hour.

We drove Athena to the nearby hotel and dropped her off. She reached around the seat to give me a hug and a thank you for driving her, which was no trouble at all. If anything, it was awesome to spend the day with her. It's cool for me to know that the wrestlers I'm fans of are also genuinely nice people, and I believe Athena is just that. After that, we headed back to Steph's house and along the way, two frogs tried to kill themselves by hopping into the middle of the road. I'm swerving (in the rain) to try and avoid them and Steph says, "Just hit them! If they want to die then so be it!" I'm like, no! I don't want to be a frog killer! She says, "Just think of it like a live edition of Frogger." I laughed so hard I had to stop at a stop sign and wait until I could breathe before we could go on!

By the time we got back to the house and settled in, it was 2 a.m. We had to be up early again to head out, as Steph had another show to do in Marietta, Ohio. When she invited me to stay with her, she said I could go with her to Remix Pro which I accepted. She was set to wrestle Sara Del Rey for her Remix Pro women's title, and I wasn't going to pass up that match since I had liked the one they had had at Girls Night Out 4. We were out the door early again Sunday to drive over to a friend's house who was also going to pick them up. Due to traffic issues, we got there in time for the show but too late for Steph to set up shop at her table. Fortunately Diana took care of that so she could sell her stuff at intermission.

The crowd was very different for Remix than AIW. For instance, there were a lot of children which helped generate a lot of crowd noise, plus there were several mentally handicapped people. Everyone was into the show and it was fun to see how seriously fans still take it. Steph played a heel to Del Rey's face and when she won the title, it got a mixed reaction. However, once they shook hands, most people started cheering for Sassy. So you can imagine the surprise on people's faces when Hailey appeared to challenge for the belt. The match was set for later in the show (the bout before the main event in fact), so Steph was able to come out as champion for intermission.

Steph looks good in gold.

It was during intermission that I observed how it can take a toil on wrestlers when interacting with fans. It helps if you're good with people, like Sassy is, and I asked her if she was naturally good with people or if it was something that came over time. She had worked in a doctor's office previously, where she had learned to interact and handle people with all sorts of disabilities. It made me smile several times seeing how great she was with the kids and the people with handicaps. She never shied away from a hug or from talking to anyone who came up to her. So many of them congratulated her on the title win and hoped that she would retain against Hailey.


Despite being a heel, when Hailey won the belt, a lot of the crowd was disappointed. I studied the audience and saw that, while Hatred got a large reaction when she pinned Steph, quite a few people looked sad and surprised. I could identify - I was one of them. It made no sense to take a local belt and put it on a lady who was heading back to Japan in a few days. Most Remix fans would most likely not see any of the title defenses (if it was defended over there at all), and how would it make the belt anymore prestigious than it would having a champion that lives in Ohio? It makes no sense to me as a fan. While I don't blame Hailey like a lot of people do, I felt (and still feel) Sass deserved better. This mistake is on Remix. I've read that some fans felt Hailey should have refused to do it. Perhaps, but if you follow that logic, it leads to asking why Steph didn't refuse to do the show period. I didn't ask her this, as it's not my place - instead I admire her willingness to go through with it. It shows her professionalism in the face of a foolish decision by the promotion. Nonetheless, it was a taste of the politics I had heard so much about in wrestling.

I didn't like it.

Hailey and I, sweet woman.

After the show, before Steph came out (I swear, I think she's one of the last people to leave any show she is at!), I chatted with Hailey who was glad to see me. I finally got my picture with her and was able to wish her safe travels when she went back to Japan. I saw Del Rey, but seeing as how before the show started, fans got a chance to have a picture with her and the Remix Pro Champion Facade, and I had partaken (she smiled when she saw me and said, "Long time no see!"), I wasn't going to bother her further. Instead I waited with Diana until Steph came out. She managed to sell a few more pictures, and thanked the fans who expressed their disappointment with her loss.

Finally it was time to leave and it was here we had to separate. Her, Diana and her friends were going back to their town and I was heading home. It was about 8pm-ish and the sun was on it's way down. I hugged Diana and Sassy, and thanked her again for her hospitality and the whole experience.

Somehow...my GPS thought the best way to get me home was take me from Marietta down into West Virginia and hang a right at Charlestown. This included driving through buckets of rain which, combined with night time, wasn't a great mix at all. Fortunately I was a lot more awake than I had been earlier (poor Diana who rode with me on the way to get the limo was subjected to me almost falling asleep at points and swerving the car) but good God it was a long drive! Didn't get home until 1 a.m. I fell in my bed like I'd been away for five years.

On the way home, however, I got to thinking. I reflected on what I had seen and experienced over the weekend. I thought about the long travel the men and women in independent wrestling do in addition to being college students and/or having jobs outside of wrestling. I thought about how they had to make sure they packed everything they would need, including plenty of merch. I thought about how they had to put on their best faces for the fans, even when they were tired or hungry. I thought about how they had to put up with the political bullshit and try to remain a professional so as to not disappoint the fans who had paid money to see them. I thought about the pay they got which was not nearly as much as they deserved. I thought about how critical it was to sell as much merchandise as possible at every show.

I realised that I had had no clue how hard this life really is. The travel alone had worn me out, and I'd not even done half as much as other women do. Combine that with the pressures and the stress of the other factors I mentioned above and it's a wonder that anyone gets into wrestling. Some do it to get to WWE, but others are content with remaining outside the mainstream. It makes me appreciate the ones that are in there, giving it all they have, putting up with all the baggage that comes with the job. They must truly have a passion for wrestling - otherwise, why would anyone remain in it at the independent level? There's little money and no fame beyond a small group of fans. Love for the sport is what drive the women and men here.

As a fan, all I can say is with all my heart thank you. Thank you for not giving up in the face of all you have to go through. Thank you for putting your heart and soul into what you do. Thank you very much - I appreciate it more than words could ever say.

A special thank you to Sassy Stephanie, for allowing me to write this, as well as for her hospitality and her trust. It means more than you'll ever know. If at least one person has a greater appreciation for the life of an independent wrestler after reading this, then I have accomplished something.

Support the promotions that respect female wrestling and give them a platform to perform on as athletes. Support the women that bust their asses for us. They deserve it.

Wrestling, Chick-Fil-A, and Homophobia - Enough

When do you finally say enough is enough and it's time for a change? Owen Hart's words ring so true in this day and age, when a lot of wrestling fans are getting fed up with being mocked (subtly or not so subtly), antagonised and outright shitted on because they are women, another race, or, increasingly, LGBT. Social media has broken what was left of kayfabe and thanks to Twitter, Facebook and other sites, we can see wrestlers at their best and their worst. True, we only see what they present for us to see, but if regular people are capable of abusing social media, or typing something in the heat of the moment, so are people in the entertainment world. We have seen it with actors and other sports figures - so too are we seeing it with wrestlers. Even if something offensive is posted and deleted, nothing is ever truly deleted from the internet. It only takes a moment for something to spread like wildfire.

Recently, someone I'm acquainted with on Twitter posted a response to something someone under the Twitter account "NWALegends" had said. What the person under that account said is below in screen caps. (Click to enlarge and read from bottom to top.)

I later found out that the man behind this account is Greg Price, someone who is well known in the wrestling world for organizing the NWA Fan Fests, as well as being the mastermind behind the short-lived NWA: New Beginnings, which was based out of Charlotte, NC. He is also the organizer of the NWA Wrestling Legends Hall of Heroes, which, while not being officially endorsed by the NWA, has been given permission to use the name. So while not working officially FOR the NWA, this is a man that has close ties with the long running, esteemed promotion.

Unfortunately this is nothing new, someone in wrestling commenting on homosexuality. We have seen several examples in the past, most notably with one half of the Ring of Honor tag team the Briscoe Brothers, Jay Briscoe, shooting off right before one of their iPPVs last year. (Cageside Seats has the story: http://www.cagesideseats.com/2011/6/27/2247315/rohs-jay-briscoe-shows-questionable-twitter-judgement ) March of 2011 saw one of WWE's most prominent figures, Michael Cole, tweet his college Josh Matthews, calling him a 'faggot' - the tweet was later deleted and Cole apologised, as did WWE. (TMZ reported it http://www.tmz.com/2011/03/26/wwe-glaad-gay-slur-homophobic-twitter-michael-cole-josh-mathews/ ) Just last month, WWE Hall of Famer Shawn "The Heartbreak Kid" Michaels tweeted to a fan who had asked about his hairline "Another dude obsessed w/my hair #homo". As is par for the course, HBK deleted it after negative feedback. (http://www.prowrestlingscoops.com/wwe/wwe-news/hbk-tweets-homophobic-remark-alicia-fox-pics/) And TNA star AJ Styles has long made his opinions on homosexuals known.

However, the recent controversy with Chick-Fil-A has apparently made some wrestlers bold enough to state that they stand with the company, citing that it's an issue of "freedom of speech" rather than one of bigotry, hatred or homophobia. Yesterday, August 1st, was announced as "Chick-Fil-A Appreciation Day" by former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee, and people were urged to eat there to show their support for the beleaguered company. (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/24/mike-huckabee-chick-fil-a-appreciation-day_n_1696648.html) Some wrestlers showed their support by posting pictures of them eating at the fast food chain, such as Brad Cain aka Lodi (of Lenny and Lodi fame) https://twitter.com/lodi1brad/status/230746827639623680 Several wrestlers took to their twitter to sound off.

Here are tweets from Kirby Mac:

Scorpio Sky (who has previously made homophobic statements on Twitter last year; however, I am unfortunately unable to locate them) - note that the Young Bucks, Matt and Nick Jackson agreed with Sky:

The Twitter exchange with Greg Price/NWALegends was listed at the start of this post. Former WCW star (if you can call him that) Lash LeRoux posted this on his Facebook page (http://www.gerweck.net/2012/08/02/former-wcw-star-comments-on-the-chik-fil-a-controversary/):

Congratulations on such a phenomenally successful Appreciation Day, Chick-fil-A! I have noticed a few people posting derisive remarks and quietly scoffing at the outpouring of support Chick-fil-A received yesterday. Most such commentary seemed to be initiated by those who agreed with Chick-fil-A’s position in principle, yet they cynically viewed the Appreciation Day as a marketing ploy by the fast food giant in an attempt to capitalize on the current controversy. The implication is those who stood in lines for hours were duped by franchise owners who sought nothing more than a spike in profits. However, such a jaded view overlooks the heart of the issue: Christians and conservatives who have increasingly faced insults, mockery and verbal abuse for their fundamental beliefs and convictions. On Wednesday, August 1, 2012, that silent majority stood up and made their voices heard through the power of their purse.
Now a day removed from this massive outpouring, I find it ironic that those who think such efforts were insignificant and trivial seem to be the same who lament that our nation sat quietly by while prayer was removed from school, the Ten Commandments torn out of the courtroom and God was no longer welcomed in the public square. Our generation has learned an indispensable lesson: Silence is capitulation and conviction is not hate.

Now this is only a taste of what is out there. Imagine being a wrestling fan who is also gay and has for years put up with the fact that there is homophobia in wrestling and homophobic wrestlers. Imagine trying to keep your passion alive as it is something that you've loved for years. Now imagine going online during all this controversy to see so many people speaking out in support of CFA, seeing it Tweeted and Facebooked until all the noise, the vitriol and the hatred swirls around in your head until there's a veritable tornado in your mind. And you just cannot take it anymore.

This is what happened to my acquaintance Caelen (WrestlingUpdate on Twitter) yesterday. He had also been one of the people tweeting Mr. Price about his comments. We all have our breaking points and his was yesterday. He posted this for everyone to see and ReTweet:

NEWSFLASH: THE GAYS ARE FANS TOO. (PLS RT)

For so long now I have bitten my lip, simply reporting on Professional Wrestling and keeping my personal life and politics well away from this twitter account.

A few months back I challenged a pro wrestler on homophobic subtext to their blog, they replied with a polite, friendly response but otherwise not adressing any of the points I made - I decided not to take this any further with them as I believed there was no malicious intent. Around the same time I witnessed a blatant display of hate speech coming from one half of a very well known tag-team, I simply unfollowed as I found the content rather disturbing - he has since apologised.

Since then I have seen more and more attacks on homosexuality, much of it masked by "religion" "free-speech" or "MY opinion" which leads me to yesterday.

A well known wrestling organisation professed it's support to Chick-Fil-A as well as it's support for "traditional" marriage - comparing two men or two women marrying to paedophilia. I challenged this to no reply, then a short while ago I noticed the original wrestler I discussed claiming #unity in supporting Chick-Fil-A defiantly on twitter. I'm done. THIS is where I draw the line and speak up.

Chick-Fil-A corporate profits support the Family Research Council. The FRC is officially listed as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center - along side the KKK, Westboro Baptist Church and American Nazi Party. In 2010 The FRC spend $25,000 lobbying congress NOT to condemn Uganda's "Kill the gays" bill.

I am a wrestling fan, I buy merchandise, DVDs, BluRays, tickets to events, promote said events online, promote wrestlers online - my money goes into YOUR pockets each and every week, and I just so happen to be gay.

I knew I was a wrestling fan before I knew I was gay, there's no seedy interest (if you were to see my partner you would certainly see he is NOT wrestler build) I just love the sport, has been a passion for as long as I can remember.

They say to never meet your idols, well never add them on twitter either - in the past week I have been nothing but disappointed by pro-wrestlers using their position to support causes which discriminate towards homosexuals, so much so it has made me not only consider walking away from this twitter account but walking away from wrestling entirely - I am just utterly despondant that these people who I SUPPORT persist on supporting the criminality of equality.

I am starting to see how the frustration Chris Kanyon felt would take him to such low places, some of these people even claimed to have been his friends!

Religion or personal beliefs are no excuse to discriminate against a person due to their sexuality, race or sex - it's 2012, it's not acceptable.

Caelen is from the United Kingdom, where he is currently engaged to his boyfriend. He's been a wrestling fan since 1983, and he is by no means alone in his disgust with this issue. Wrestling is a niche product as it is, so it is astounding that wrestlers and promotions think they can afford to alienate part of their fan base. Then again, given how companies like World Wrestling Entertainment treat their gay fan base (as well as their female fan base and their minority fan base {see: the lack of talented female wrestlers on television; the Abraham Washington rape joke from July 30th 2012 RAW; Jerry Lawler's racist comment on the same broadcast; Lord Tensai's racist Tout from July 31st 2012; and the many, many racist gimmicks minorities have been cast to work}), this is probably not as surprising it may sound.

However, the Chick-Fil-A controversy goes much deeper than freedom of speech, despite what people want to believe. After all, if you speak your mind in the United States, that's fine. However, words have consequences and so do actions. It is Dan Cathy's actions, as president of CFA that have drawn the most criticism.

This stemmed from an interview done with K. Allan Blume for the Biblical Recorder and posted on the Baptist Press. The link can be found here: http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=38271 What drew notice was his stance at the bottom on supporting "traditional marriage." Cathy says,

Some have opposed the company's support of the traditional family. "Well, guilty as charged," said Cathy when asked about the company's position.

"We are very much supportive of the family -- the biblical definition of the family unit. We are a family-owned business, a family-led business, and we are married to our first wives. We give God thanks for that.

"We operate as a family business ... our restaurants are typically led by families; some are single. We want to do anything we possibly can to strengthen families. We are very much committed to that," Cathy emphasized.

"We intend to stay the course," he said. "We know that it might not be popular with everyone, but thank the Lord, we live in a country where we can share our values and operate on biblical principles."

Some writers did some investigation, and it turns out that this is more than Cathy supporting traditional marriage and strengthening families. The New Civil Rights Movement website published this report on July 19th (http://thenewcivilrightsmovement.com/chick-fil-a-so-whats-the-big-deal-its-just-some-chicken-right/politics/2012/07/19/44029):

Dan Cathy, President and COO of Chick-Fil-A, recently was reported as saying in an interview with the Baptist Press that he and Chick-Fil-A are “guilty as charged” when defining family units as one man and one woman. His verbal support of this corporate philosophy validates concerns expressed for well over a year by many LGBT organizations. Chick-Fil-A actively donates and supports organizations working to strip rights away and exclude gays and lesbians from such things as job protection, hospital visitation, inheritance rights, adoption, and marriage.

Equality Matters released information on Chick-Fil-A’s $2 million in donations in 2010 to anti-gay and anti-gay marriage organizations in the United States. It is important to note that all of the organizations referenced have taken an active role toward the discrimination of gays and lesbians.

• Exodus International
• National Christian Foundation
• Fellowship of Christian Athletes
• Family Research Council
• Marriage and Family Foundation
• Georgia Family Council

The largest donation of over $1 million was reported to have gone to Marriage and Family Foundation (focused on fighting against gay marriage).

The organizations referenced mask their intentions as being family-focused and of Christian orientation.  This type of positioning is reminiscent of the arguments used to protect Klu Klux Klan organizations during the 50’s/60’s/70’s. Hate groups used the concept of “preservation of family” and “Christian values” to defend their racist agendas/ambitions. Over time these organizations dehumanized entire classes of people, often leading to violence.
One important point: some of the organizations mentioned also provide a variety of quality services for families and Christian communities. Their mission and intention are not exclusively anti-gay.

This information from EqualityMatters.org was published in November of 2011, but it did not make the waves that Cathy's recent statements have. Now, finally, it seems to be making headway thanks to the controversy his statements have stirred up. Here is the link to the facts about where Cathy's donations (money that CFA has made from the consumers - meaning, money from people who may not have known where their cash was going) are going: http://equalitymatters.org/factcheck/201111010001 Excerpts from the article:

WinShape Is Chick-Fil-A's Charitable Arm. The WinShape Foundation is Chick-fil-A's charitable arm, created by Chick-fil-A founder and chairman S. Truett Cathy in 1984. WinShape has received a substantial amount of funding from Chick-fil-A: in 2009 alone, WinShape received $7,814,788 from Chick-fil-A Inc. [Winshape 2009 Publicly Available IRS 990 Form via Foundation Center, accessed 10/28/11] 

WinShape Gave Over $1.7 Million To Anti-Gay Groups. In 2009 alone, WinShape donated $1,733,699 to multiple anti-gay groups:

• Marriage & Family Legacy Fund: $994,199
• Fellowship Of Christian Athletes: $480,000
• National Christian Foundation: $240,000
• Focus On The Family: $12,500
• Eagle Forum: $5,000
• Exodus International: $1,000
• Family Research Council: $1,000

[Winshape 2009 Publicly Available IRS 990 Form via Foundation Center, accessed 10/28/11]

Fellowship Of Christian Athletes (FCA)

Fellowship Of Christian Athletes Conference Has "Freed" People From Homosexuality. Every year, the Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) holds a National College Conference that Danny Burns, the conference Program Director, described as one in which "God freed some people from homosexuality, sexual sins, addictions and even ushered newcomers into His Kingdom." Burns’ comment has since been edited on FCA’s website. [Equality Matters, 3/22/11, Fellowship of Christian Athletes, accessed 10/28/11]

Fellowship of Christian Athletes Website Highlights Coach Who Was “Delivered From Homosexuality. [Fellowship of Christian Athletes, accessed 10/28/11]

 

FCA Ministry Leader Application Condemns "Impure Lifestyle" of Gays. The application to become an FCA Ministry Leader requires applicants to agree with the FCA's Sexual Purity Statement, which condemns gays as engaging in an "impure lifestyle":

God desires His children to lead pure lives of holiness. The Bible is clear in teaching on sexual sin including sex outside of marriage and homosexual acts. Neither heterosexual sex outside of marriage nor any homosexual act constitute an alternate lifestyle acceptable to God.

While upholding God’s standard of holiness, FCA strongly affirms God’s love and redemptive power in the individual who chooses to follow Him. FCA’s desire is to encourage individuals to trust in Jesus and turn away from any impure lifestyle. [FCA Application, accessed 10/28/11]

WinShape Donated $480,000 To Fellowship of Christian Athletes. WinShape donated $480,000 to the Fellowship of Christian Athletes in 2009. [Winshape 2009 Publicly Available IRS 990 Form via Foundation Center, accessed 10/28/11]

Eagle Forum

Eagle Forum Is An Extreme Right-Wing Anti-Gay Group. Phyllis Schafly’s Eagle Forum consistently promotes disparaging claims about LGBT people. The group opposed the Supreme Court’s decision to decriminalize homosexuality in 2003 and has railed against courts for promoting a “gay agenda” in schools. [Eagle Forum, 7/18/03, August 2006]

WinShape Donated $5,000 To Eagle Forum. WinShape donated $5,000 to Eagle Forum in 2009. [Winshape 2009 Publicly Available IRS 990 Form via Foundation Center, accessed 10/28/11]

Exodus International

Exodus International Promotes “Ex-Gay” Therapy. Exodus International is one of the world’s largest promoters of “ex-gay” therapy,  the practice of trying to change a person’s sexual orientation from gay to straight. The organization refers to being LGBT as “perverse” and a form of “sexual brokenness.” [Truth Wins Out, accessed 10/28/11]

WinShape Donated $1,000 To Exodus International. WinShape donated $1,000 to Exodus International in 2009. [Winshape 2009 Publicly Available IRS 990 Form via Foundation Center, accessed 10/28/11] 

Is it clear yet why this is not an issue of free speech? Is it clear yet why Chick-Fil-A donating money to these organizations is a problem? All the money is documented in the public IRS forms. This is not a lie, a scam or false accusations. CFA is guilty of donating consumer money to anti-gay organizations. "So what?" you may say. "Other businesses donate money to organizations I may not agree with." Fair enough, but it's worth pointing out that Exodus International promotes "Conversion Therapy" (otherwise known as "Reparative Therapy"), which is therapy that seeks to change the sexual orientation of people. It's built around the assumption that homosexuality is a mental disease and can be 'fixed' via different types of therapy which include masturbatory reconditioning; social skills training; prayer groups and even aversive treatments, like the application of electric shock to the genitals.

Former 'patients' of Exodus have claimed to have been subjected to such shock treatment. All this, despite the fact that in 1973 the American Psychiatric Association declassified homosexuality as a mental disorder. The American Psychological Association Council of Representatives did the same in 1975 and other major mental health organizations followed until, in 1990, the World Health Organization declassified it as well. Yet, these groups still insist that it is a mental disorder that can be and needs to be corrected.

Imagine being a gay teenager dragged off to one of these groups and subjected to such "therapy." Imagine being told that your love for a person of your own sex is "unnatural" and a "mental disease" along the lines of schizophrenia and bi-polar disorder. Now imagine being a wrestling fan since 1983 and being faced with such blatant homophobia from people that you admired and respected, and said homophobia is not only tolerated in the sport you love but in some places actively encouraged. This is nothing new, of course, since the "gay stereotype" is a trope in wrestling story lines - but this is no stereotype speaking, these are the people behind the characters that are speaking out now. Letting their dislike and disgust for LGBT people shine openly.

Is it any wonder that Caelen, along with hundreds of wrestling fans that are also gay, have finally had enough? The only wonder is that it did not happen sooner, although with the explosion of social media in this day and age, it is easier to catch a glimpse into a famous person's mind than ever before. Some people have said, "It's not a big deal, it's always been this way." Many things have "always been this way" - slavery, women and African Americans being unable to vote, minorities being unable to hold certain jobs, so on and so forth.

There is absolutely no excuse for homophobia in wrestling. Not if wrestlers and promotions want to continue to exist. You cannot afford to alienate your fan base and make no mistake - you have LGBT fans in your audience. They exist. Why alienate them? You have an opinion about gay people? Keep it to yourself and off social media, unless you want to lose money. I personally stopped supporting Ring of Honor after Jay Briscoes'  tweet last year. In recent years, any promotion that utilizes their female talent in a degrading, humiliating way I drop all support for. I'm one person, but if more people start using their power and their voices yes, things can change.

Power lies in the wallet. If we want these wrestlers and promotions to stop alienating parts of their fan base, we must use this power. Stop purchasing DVDs, stop watching their television programs, stop buying their merchandise and start speaking out on social media. Things do not change unless we make them.

This has been a long post, but I feel it appropriate to end it with Caelen's own post (http://wrestlingupdateplus.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/the-gays-are-fans-too-blog.html) since he inspired this.

Yes, I know.. for years now I said @WrestlingUpdate would always be a stand alone feature, no website, no blog, no facebook.. a lone twitter entity. Well, that changed - I am primarily posting this due to being asked so many times about a tweet I made a few days ago, here it is, in it's entirety.

NEWSFLASH: THE GAYS ARE FANS TOO. (PLS RT)

For so long now I have bitten my lip, simply reporting on Professional Wrestling and keeping my personal life and politics well away from this twitter account.

A few months back I challenged a pro wrestler on homophobic subtext to their blog, they replied with a polite, friendly response but otherwise not adressing any of the points I made - I decided not to take this any further with them as I believed there was no malicious intent. Around the same time I witnessed a blatant display of hate speech coming from one half of a very well known tag-team, I simply unfollowed as I found the content rather disturbing - he has since apologised.

Since then I have seen more and more attacks on homosexuality, much of it masked by "religion" "free-speech" or "MY opinion" which leads me to yesterday. A well known wrestling organisation professed it's support to Chick-Fil-A as well as it's support for "traditional" marriage - comparing two men or two women marrying to paedophilia. I challenged this to no reply, then a short while ago I noticed the original wrestler I discussed claiming #unity in supporting Chick-Fil-A defiantly on twitter. I'm done. THIS is where I draw the line and speak up.

Chick-Fil-A corporate profits support the Family Research Council. The FRC is officially listed as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center - along side the KKK, Westboro Baptist Church and American Nazi Party. In 2010 The FRC spend $25,000 lobbying congress NOT to condemn Uganda's "Kill the gays" bill.

I am a wrestling fan, I buy merchandise, DVDs, BluRays, tickets to events, promote said events online, promote wrestlers online - my money goes into YOUR pockets each and every week, and I just so happen to be gay.

I knew I was a wrestling fan before I knew I was gay, there's no seedy interest (if you were to see my partner you would certainly see he is NOT wrestler build) I just love the sport, has been a passion for as long as I can remember.

They say to never meet your idols, well never add them on twitter either - in the past week I have been nothing but disappointed by pro-wrestlers using their position to support causes which discriminate towards homosexuals, so much so it has made me not only consider walking away from this twitter account but walking away from wrestling entirely - I am just utterly despondant that these people who I SUPPORT persist on supporting the criminality of equality.

I am starting to see how the frustration Chris Kanyon felt would take him to such low places, some of these people even claimed to have been his friends! Religion or personal beliefs are no excuse to discriminate against a person due to their sexuality, race or sex - it's 2012, it's not acceptable.

There was so much more I wanted to say but was aware if I rambled and went on forever, no-one would read - this said I was taken aback by just HOW MUCH it was read, I recieved hundreds and hundreds of retweets yesterday- many from wrestlers who have been in WWE/TNA/ROH.

I have never been easy to offend or overly dramatic as I am sure my followers will attest to, I have never really been exposed to such a level of homophobia - masked or otherwise as my family, friends and community see me as I am, not who I sleep with. I have no problems with acceptance - in life it is all I know.

With all that said, I never believed that the one constant in my life since 1983 would be the first exposure I had to real hatred, hatred of something which is a part of me. This has been lifted by the masses of support recieved but a part of me will always remember that those people, whose pockets I lined with money do not see me as their equal.

I am going to call this a day now, I never intended to become some sort of gay, caped wrestling crusader or the voice of the people- I just wanted people to hear the voice of me. I had never intended to flood peoples timelines or end up in a heated debate with Tatanka (yes, it was as bizarre as it sounds) over freedom of speech - I just needed for 5 minutes to express myself as Caelen King, not @WrestlingUpdate.

That said, the question remains: how to strike the balance between free speech and mutual respect in this mixed-up world, both blessed and cursed with instant communication? We should not fight fire with fire, threats with threats.
Timothy Garton Ash