IMPACT Wrestling star Gisele Shaw has called out Rick Steiner for allegedly making derogatory comments towards her at WrestleCon.
The 34-year-old star, who revealed during Toronto Pride, hit out at the former WCW star for shouting transphobic comments at her as she walked through the convention during WrestleMania weekend.
In a lengthy statement on Twitter she said: ‘I have been bullied all my life and have never stood up for myself because I’m scared that I would get beat up physically, mentally, or emotionally. The bullies in my life have always silenced me, but that ends today!’
She said the alleged incident took place during an autograph signing as she walked towards her table to meet fans at the event.
She wrote: ‘I hear someone yelling “you’re a man” “you’re a dude,” “you’re a piece of trash,” “You are filth,” “get the f*** away from here.” I kept my head down and kept walking as I did not want to acknowledge that hate.’
At the time, didn’t know who had made the comments, and so she decided to ‘walk in that area’ again, where she heard ‘that same person saying the same derogatory comments.
She continued: ‘I looked at the person and it was Rick Steiner saying those statements. I was shocked and could not believe that this was even happening. To have someone saying those comments who a lot of people look up to and consider their hero was quite shocking and disheartening.
[I was in disbelief so I asked him, “excuse me?!” He kept repeating those hateful phrases and started yelling at me in a public setting. It was inexcusable and unacceptable!’
Gisele said that ‘other wrestling legends’ didn’t ‘want to get involved’ or ‘stand up for what’s right’, choosing to watch things unfold instead of defending her.
‘I am not writing this because I want sympathy. I am writing this because I am done being bullied to silence. Today is International Transgender Day of Visibility and I am standing up for myself and for other people who go through the exact same situation on a daily basis,’ she wrote.
‘This keeps happening because people let it slide and do not take any action. If you do business with these type of people then I will not to do business with you.’
Rick is yet to address Gisele’s post himself, but it’s said he has been removed from the WrestleCon lineup for the remainder of the weekend, and the organisation has issued a statement.
The organisers said: ‘WrestleCon regrets the events that took place at yesterday’s convention and apologizes to Gisele Shaw. We aim to promote a safe and inclusive environment for all LGBTQAI+ members of the wrestling community.
‘The issue has been addressed and we hope the remainder of the convention can be a positive experience for all.’
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