Been out of town the past couple of days, and came back to read the news online about Michael Hayes' suspension.
Thought I'd offer some thoughts on the situation.
There's an old joke in the wrestling business that wrestlers don't see people as black or white, that the only color that matters in wrestling is green, as in money.
And I believe that to be true. Like any other form of entertainment, the color of a wrestler's skin or his heritage is not a roadblock but an opportunity -- a wild card for helping to tell a story or for expanding your product to a new audience.
I don't believe that the wrestling business is racist; in fact, unlike most other businesses, it actually has a long history of creating characters of ALL races and ethnicities for a simple and logical reason: to build its audience. In that respect, wrestling is ahead of a multitude of other industries in race relations.
So while I don't think wrestling is racist, I do believe that the wrestling business does often prey on stereotypes of racial and ethnic groups to elicit a reaction from the crowd. They're almost a part of the fabric of the business; heck, as I'm writing this post, I'm watching the 2008 Royal Rumble on WWE 24-7, and I just heard Jerry Lawler casually refer to Santino Marella as "Spaghetti Breath."
Is that racist? Maybe. But watch Saturday Night Live or Comedy Central or HBO and Fox and find me a TV show that doesn't do the same damn thing.
It used to be in wrestling that promoters made sure they had a wrestler of every nationality and background for every demographic group. That's why a guy named Terry Bollea was redubbed Hulk Hogan for an Irish audience (thanks to all who corrected me on this), or why a guy named Joe Scarpa was renamed Chief Jay Strongbow for a Native American audience.
Yes, wrestling has a history of pushing race buttons to get a reaction from the crowd. That's one of the core definitions of "cheap heat." It's the reason why the Mexicools ride lawnmowers, why Virgil was Ted DiBiase's servant, why Eddie Guerrero rode a lowrider. It's even why Billy and Chuck were so ambiguously gay, and why Eugene was our mentally challenged hero.
We as fans look at these characters and decide if we want to boo or cheer. And while Vince and his team might try to persuade us one way or another, WE ultimately make that decision.
Do these broad stereotypes of the races play a part in the creative process? Of course they do. I remember a creative session during the period when the Unamericans were flailing. One person suggested we add a stereotypical Arab character to lead that group -- years before Muhammad Hassan, and less than a year after 9/11. This was one idea I fought til the end -- the old expression in creative was "Fight if you want to fight, but ask yourself -- is this a hill you're willing to die on?" And fighting against introducing an Arab character 10 months after 9/11 was a hill I was willing to die on.
There was another time that I heard someone on WWE's production end use a racial slur to explain their vision for a certain wrestler's character. Did it shock me? Yes, of course. But I didn't look at the person as a racist. They knew that a stereotypical portrayal of the word he'd used would generate heat from the crowd, and that's all he was trying to express. Simple as that. That's just how the creative process works sometimes.
That's the entertainment business. That's just how it works. Was it shocking to me to hear characters discussed in that way? Sure. But you know what? It's not unlike ANY other form of entertainment. Not that it makes it right, but in many ways, it's not unlike any other storytelling device.
Do I believe Michael Hayes is a racist? No, I don't. Sure, he's a good old boy from the Deep South, and yes, he used to wear a Confederate flag to get heat, but that was his wrestling character. Michael's from the south and he's proud of that. Hell, Michael's a guy who was working with Junkyard Dog and other black superstars in the deep south almost three decades ago.
He's also the head booker for SmackDown, a perpetual top-five show in the black and Latino markets, and a show where they often push minority characters to reach out to that audience -- Rey Mysterio, Booker T, etc.
So here's my take on things, knowing what little I know of the situation: Michael made a comment that was completely disrespectful and inappropriate. Michael was wrong to make the comment. Mark Henry was right to speak up about something that made him uncomfortable. The office was right to suspend Michael for 60 days.
But to pretend that Michael Hayes is the problem is ludicrous. What about all those fans who boo when Billy and Chuck would do their thing? Or those people who'd cheer Eddie Guerrero's lowrider? Heck, I'm not going to lie to you -- I was a huge fan of when Funaki did his "SmackDown Number One Announcer" bit -- politically incorrect as it might have been. If portraying people in certain ways didn't draw money or intrigue the fans, they wouldn't be doing it.
The gut reaction by many is to look at Michael Hayes, to judge him, to draw conclusions based on his actions. And yes, his actions were wrong. But perhaps it's we the fans -- the ones who boo and cheer for certain racial, ethnic and social behaviors in this morality play we call pro wrestling -- who also need to take a look at ourselves.
Comments (32)
Great post. It really saddens me that certain people now want to make Michael Hayes the next Jimmy the Greek or. Somehow Hayes now represents everything that is racist in wrestling. How do you prove that your not racist once the media labels you that? I'm sure others will pile on and tell their stories how they heard Hayes use a word 40 years ago. Context and actions are much more important. The wwe also didn't wait until the media heard about this to suspend him. He was suspended because they thought he was wrong and not because they were forced to. I have to applaud them for that and wish other companies would do the same.
i dont think ps hayes is a racist either but there is a well known racist in one jeff jarrett im glad that racists wife died
First off, how is Jeff Jarret a racist? Secondly, while this type of racism may occur in other areas, but WWE is still a publicly traded company and Hayes is in a position of power over a lot of other individuals but especially over Mark Henry.
First off, how is Jeff Jarret a racist? Secondly, while this type of racism may occur in other areas, but WWE is still a publicly traded company and Hayes is in a position of power over a lot of other individuals but especially over Mark Henry.
"That's why a guy named Terry Bollea was redubbed Hulk Hogan for an Italian audience."
Which is why he went from an Italian name to an Irish name?
Anyway, you can't equate "Spaghetti Breath" with "I'm more of an N-word than you." From someone who even before the Mark Henry incident had been mentioned repeatedly as someone who had been using racial slurs.
At any rate, I miss when this was an inside look into how WWE ticks, rather than a platform for you to get on your high horse and compare apples to oranges ad nauseum (see also your "I wish the candidates would do this" post. (Because John McCain was a P.O.W. he should ask why wrestlers die early? Really?)
I think it as this. Michael Hayes is what, 50 years old? When Michael Hayes grew up, the N-word was a common term for people their age. When my parent grew up, they used the tern "negro." I remember having to correct them many times by saying the correct term is African American. The older a person gets, the more racial their terms for minorities get. You have to remember, when Hayes grew up, I am sure their was racism everywhere and terms we find inexcusable now were common back then. Am I condoning what Hayes said? No, he should know better. I am sure he is quite up to date on pop culture and what the young people in society condone....he would have to be if he is a booker for Smackdown!. As you said, he is a southern country boy and I am sure that word was thrown around plenty of times. It is unfortunate that Hayes used it today because he should be well aware that that word is not excepted in today's society.
******
I'm not sure that Hayes deserves labelling a racist, so much as he merits a couple of slaps from the "stupid stick" for being dumb enough to use such an emotive word whilst working in a corporate environment. I would find it more likely that he was trying to play it cool and drunkenly misjudging it. Maybe he meant the word as a synonym for "gangsta" and was trying to convey that to Henry, but foolishly used a word that can be used to express racial derision as well as a lifestyle stereotype.
If the reports of what Hayes said are accurate, how can what he said be perceived as an insult? If he did in fact say: "I am more of a n****r than you!" , wouldn't that mean that Hayes was saying that Henry was better than him if the "N - word" is such an awful thing? Ok, of course I'm arguing semantics here but context is very important in today's society. Where was all the outrage when Vince Mcmahon uttered that same word at the Survivor Series a few years ago - LIVE on PPV no less? How was his usage of the word any different from Hayes'? As a black person, I'm tired of certain people in my community acting like this word has so much power attached to it. It doesn't. It's effectiveness has certainly diminished now since rappers started using it and hell, even white kids are using it to refer to themselves. Suspending Michael Hayes was a business decision to prevent any type of legal action and I understand that. I only wish that Mark Henry had talked to Hayes instead of feeling that he had to go to management to get the situation rectified.
Yeah, let's hang P.S. Hayes! He insulted the self-proclaimed "Silver Back" (not racial at all), MVP (arrogant black athlete with corn rolls and do-rags, not racial), and Umaga (the jungle savage, not racial). None of these guys have the right to complain about being insulted when they portray the very stereotype they claim to be insulted by. Just in case any of my "brothers" start to call me a racist, Yes I am a proud strong Black Man.
Yes! Thank you for correcting me on the Bollea/Hogan thing. It was really late last night when I wrote this.
And hansen9j, I'm sorry to interject my opinion into things. I forget that some of you are still under the McMahon brainwashing spell, which states that nothing is true about the business unless it comes from a WWE employee, and former employees are not entitled to make valid points about the sorry state of the business, since they're just bitter anyway.
Do I think Hayes is a racist? No, but I do think he's kind of an idiot for thinking that was acceptable behaviour.
Crime Time... that's all I have to say.
Would anyone have taken offence if Hayes had simply said "I'm more of a black man than you are"? That doesn't even make sense. I'm thinking Hayes used the word to denote a stereotype rather than refer to a black person in general. The connotations of the word apply differently in modern society... even black people use the word to describe a certain type of person (see Rock, Chris).
It's just a word, a collection of letters, and the hysterical reaction to it is what empowers the word to begin with. I understand the historical significance of it, but black people are equally if not more guilty of the word enduring into modern times as a casual reference rather than an outright insult. This is leading to a total example of blatant double standards. If a black man uses it, it's affectionate or humourous; contrastingly, if a white person uses the exact same word in the exact same context, they are branded a racist.
Quite frankly, unless it was used directly to insult Henry with malicious intent, Henry should have allowed it to go over his head, maybe even called Hayes out on his ignorance and put the record straight, giving him the benefit of the doubt.
If Hayes is a noted racist, then he deserves to be taught a lesson and will hopefully be rehabilitated because there is no room for that crap in 2008, especially in positions of power... and I'm talking in the world in general, not just the wrestling business. However, if Hayes meant no harm with his questionable use of the word, then this is just another example of political correctness and positive discrimination. If Hayes was genuinely just ignorant but not malicious, then I do feel bad for his villification.
This is just a forum for bitter people to further their vendettas against WWE. I've been reading some of the recent columns and I have to say they're a joke forthe most part. So basically the writers here are saying WWE is racist, they're the only wrestling company in history to have racial character and backstage racism and they invented racism in wrestling.
Funny there's no talk aboout things like TNA and how Konnan is suing them for racial discrimination. Konnan has gone on record stating that he and others in TNA would have slurs thrown at the by mangement and some were held down.
Or how about past wrestling promoters or personalities who have had racial allegations thrown against them like? Bill Watts and Jim Cornette come to mind?
What, no mention of WCW's racial discrimination lawsuit from years ago? I know a few people cashed in big time from that lawsuit settlement.
It's all about the stupid bias against WWE.
Seth, I enjoy all your posts and unique look into the inner workings of WWE during your time. Please do not let some of these bone heads who seem to be angry at someone who is taking the time to provide entertainment for them. Its sad that these idiots can sit on their computers and say things like they're glad Jeff Jerretts's wife died, I mean if that doens't show you that people are just here to try to get a rise out of you, I don't know what will...but I degress...
Keep up the posting! Your opinions on the matters you spoke of has intrigued me most as I feel the same as you do on most of the items I've read.
Oh, and Mark Henry shoudl've talked to Hayes first if he didn't...but I can understand his frustrations. It probably wasn't the first time he used similar language.
Three words... NATION OF DOMINATION
I have an idea to solve this. Let's swap Mark Henry and Michael Hayes. Henry could be elevated to WWE management, which would definitely increase the racial diversity component, and Hayes could become a wrestler. Which would mean that we're never again subjected to a crappy Mark Henry match, and that Hayes - even at his age - has more wrestling ability and charisma than Henry will ever have.
Wrestling is NOT racist??? Are you kidding me???
You want proof, Shelton Benjamin vs. Randy Orton.
Shelton's criticism has been "he can't cut promos", "He doesn't work hard enough". blah, blah, blah.
Can Orton cut a promo? Uhhh, no! Orton's promos make Khali sound like Dusty Rhodes!
Taking the business seriously? Orton's has gotten suspended for behavior related events, what, at least 3 times?! The worst part is, every time Orton's been suspended, he's come back with a bigger push!
During this time, Shelton's been consistent on the roster, but yet going down "spots" every year!
And can anybody seriously compare the in-ring talent of Shelton vs Randy??
Look at John Cena; if Shelton was a face and got booed, would he even be employed? Much less stay the champ?? Would they have created a bunch of "monster" characters like Khali and Umaga against Shelton to try to get him over? Would they have removed Armando Estrada as a manager because he was getting more cheers than the face if he was feuding with Shelton instead of Cena?
Today is Backlash, the Main Event is Cena vs Orton vs HHH vs JBL---do you think we would ever have a day where four minorities are in the Main Event?? Heck, even when The Rock, Eddie Guerrero and Booker T were around, we didn't even see that!
If anybody thinks it's coincidence that the McMahon's are of Irish/English decent, just like their top guys Cena, Orton, Bradshaw, Undertaker, Finlay, etc. is sorely mistaking.
It sounds like you're saying in the post something akin to "everybody else does it, so it's ok". The problem is, it isn't ok, not from anybody. Many people don't have the guts to acknowledge the little bit of racist/prejudice inside them that allows them to use ethnically stereotypical, derogatory words toward others, even in jest.
I'm a black man, and just because "nigga" and it's variations are thrown around casually by many black people in the world doesn't mean I need to accept. NObody calls me that to my face twice, no matter their skin color.
Sure, there are people who haven't been acclimated to a diverse atmosphere, and they need to catch up. However, WWE is a multinational, public corporation that has by all accounts allowed this behavior to go on for years and by at least one of its highest ranking employees. It's hard for me to imagine that Michael Hayes is so ignorant of business decorum or even common civility that he thought this was innocuous jest.
I work in no less than 3 corporate environs on a daily basis, with a revolving door of others regularly, and there has never, e-e-ever been a situation where a ranking individual displayed this kind of behavior and it didn't express itself in the treatment of the people under him/her. No exceptions. I find most of the time that people who joke about other people groups feel some degree of superiority/separation which allows them to do it. Categorization is one of the most common ways to avoid dealing with individuals as individuals and needing to adjust to each person on their own merit.
Professional wrestling, as much as I loved it growing up, has made a permanent home for racism as long as I can remember. Sure, there are exceptions to the rule, but the number of characters played by non-whites which are based on a stereotype of their particular color FAR outweigh those which aren't.
While I am well aware of the "redneck" gimmicks and "foreign guy" gimmicks, nobody can say that based on percentage alone that this doesn't happen more with non whites.
Michael Hayes is probably going to become a fall guy and that would be a shame because he is only a symptom of a deeper disease. Believe it or not, I'm still a big "Freebird" fan, and "Badstreet Atlanta GA" still makes me bob my head. I just know that I've been hearing and seeing racist stuff involved with wrestling since my dad took me to my first match at the age of 7 and I got to go back to the dressing rooms because of his connections at the arena.
Wrong is wrong. Today I'm a producer and nobody gets my services on a project that casually throws in garbage just for the fun of it.
I don't know Michael P.S. Hayes personally, so I have no idea whether or not he is a racist but I do think it was stupidity on his part to use that word.
It's stupidity on ANY white person's part to use that word in the workplace or educational institute. We all know what it was used to do and we all know how it makes African American's feel. Even if you have several friends of color who don't mind if you use it, it's a bad idea to say it in public. Because whether you are or not, it will get you branded as a racist.
So if your white just don't say the word, your life will be a lot better off.
Now that I ranted in general, let me rant directly to this article...huh???
Okay, I not so sure Hayes is a racist; his comment actually sound like it might have been funny in context. Mark Henry is known as being a really nice guy, so Hayes comment/joke might have had some relation to that. Of course, someone could say that's racist if Hayes is implying that being "Black" is being "mean, scary, or just a d!ck". But whatever, I think it was meant in the same context as when everybody makes fun of Bryant Gumble.
But your arguments about racism in wrestling are pretty weak. That whole "look within yourselves" is the typical argument from any perpetrator of nonsense. And giving the example of "...watch Saturday Night Live or Comedy Central or HBO and Fox and find me a TV show that doesn't do the same damn thing." is even more silly. The whole, "well, everybody else is a pr!ck, so why can't we be?" Is the exact crap that is said by Democrats who even threaten to vote crusty McCain over Obama because he is half Black! Or was the same defense for the lame unfinished Katie Vick storyline (I actually think that story would have worked if they were as good as writers as those on Six Feet Under)
"WE" decide who we boo and cheer?? Are you kidding? You should know better! You know entire cards and shows are constructed to get a guy cheered and booed! You know even in a "Diva Dance Contest" the women are put in a certain order to get the one they want to get over, actually "gets over". Did you even see the "Help Get Michelle McCool Over By Giving Her a Custom Chopper" Contest? McCool went over on everyone every week just to win that!
There are cards where the heels win two matches in a row, just so HHH or Cena will actually get cheered when they come in for the main event. High flyers are told to tone it down if they have their matches before a top guy so they won't wear down the crowd.
"If portraying people in certain ways didn't draw money or intrigue the fans, they wouldn't be doing it." And you said THIS sentence after mentioning the Funaki gimmick?? How much money did THAT generate??
The Mexicools were not allowed to do really do anything with that stereotype gimmick. Eugene didn't really get over once they cut off the "idiot savant" part of his gimmick and just made him into a complete retard.
And Billy and Chuck were heels. Period. Not because they were ambitiously gay, but because they cheated most of their matches and mostly fought faces. When you want to see how WWE really is about gays minus Pat Patterson, look at what happened to Chris Kanyon! Shortly after he told more people he was gay, they have him make is long awaited return coming out of a box (like a closet) and having the "backstage enforcer" The Undertaker come out and beat the $#!t out of him, then fire Kanyon shortly after that segment! THAT was a hate crime, and I think someone should have went to jail over that! That came off bad and as a threat to anyone who might want to mention they are gay.
The problem is, the minorities usually portray their negative stereotypes where as Whites usually do not. For every Festus and Hillbilly Jim, there is a Dave Finlay and Hulk Hogan. The Rock and Batista have been some of the few that transcended their racial stereotype. Otherwise, most minorities are stuck with "stereotype" gimmicks that really do not help them.
I'm sure if you ask any minority to have Cena's or Orton's or HHH's gimmick, they would take it in a second!
It was an extremely insensitive and stupid thing for Michael Hayes to say period. 1. He's an employee with a position of power and influence over the person he made the remark to. 2. He's an employee of a publicly traded company with rules to follow and a code of conduct which he obviously broke. 3. No matter how Blacks may use the term it is ALWAYS a negative and racist tone when used by Whites or any other non-Blacks, period. I don't care if your Black friends don't beat the hell out of you when you or your friend use the term. 4. Just because some Blacks use the term doesn't mean all do or that we like being called such terms.
It's also ridiculous that so many WWE and Michael Hayes apologist seem to think that Mark Henry doesn't have the right to be offended by the comment. Just because someone is saddled with a stereotype gimmick doesn't mean that they are that gimmick.
Regarding "Cena's gimmick" - As I see it, Cena's gimmick is basically a lame Vanilla Ice imitation, which in turn is an imitation of - wait for it - BLACK rappers. How does that figure into your racial equations?
Wile I agree that WWE should have done something against Hayes for his inappropriate language, I also fee that the wrestler who sued the same language toward Hayes earlier in the evening (reportidly MVP)should ALSO be disciplined. Maybe not to the same degree, but he should not get away scott free. If the word is so horrible, NO ONE should be using it and it is a HORRIBLE double standard that someone can take exception to the word being used yet still use it themselves. When someone starts using that sort of language in a laid back social situation it sort of opens up it's acceptance in that setting.
Again, I am not trying to defend Hayes, but for someone to use "that word" in a close social setting and another person to use the same word in the same setting and only one of them to get in trouble is B.S. One COULD argue that Hayes would be the LESSER of the two because he reportidly din NOT call Henry that word, Hayes reportedly called HIMSELF that word... AFTER someone else called HIM that word.
Byrd makes a good point. If the word is off limits, then make it off limits, period.
The same people that want Hayes to be fired would never mention mvp getting disiplined. Its the double standard. The same thing has happened in the media. Just look at how everyone called for Don Imus's firing. The same people that wanted Imus fired for making a joke on a comedy radio show are now defending Rev Wright for making worse statements at a place of worship. All of a sudden context is important. If you want to be fair, they both should be disciplined. Its funny how some people only see the stereo types and jokes about minorities, but they fail to see the same things with all wrestlers. We had the "white boy" challenge, Ron Killings making fun of Angles family because they were all white, etc. They are equal offenders. Its also real simple to turn off the show if you hate it that much.
I think people are being too sensitive. I don't see how Finlay or MVP or Batista are really stereotypes. Finlay is a guy that 'loves to fight' which comes from him being a letit tough guy. I can't see how MVP or batista could be considered stereotypes.
Thats the problem. If one group is able to get all the stereo types out of the wwe. Then every other group will do the same. If the Junk Yard Dog character was made today. The mostly white PC police would complain and call the wwe racist. We would hear things like, "Why would the wwe invent a man with a chain and acts like a dog. Thats racist". While in truth he was a hero to our community and was a bigger star than Pistol Pete. I'm a father of two teenagers and they love cryme tyme and mvp. If you don't believe me just watch the crowd and you will see a lot of African American families rooting for them. Even if they are wrestling the good guys. Everybody loved Eddie Guerrero and enjoyed his antics. I never saw one face in the crowd crying because he came out in a low rider or cheated to win.
I don't think hayes was racist. Ignorant maybe? As I blackman I think p.s is way more of a n+gga then henry. Besides that hayes called himself that.
I don't think hayes was racist. Ignorant maybe? As I blackman I think p.s is way more of a n+gga then henry. Besides that hayes called himself that.
I don't think hayes was racist. Ignorant maybe? As I blackman I think p.s is way more of a n+gga then henry. Besides that hayes called himself that.
I don't think hayes was racist. Ignorant maybe? As I blackman I think p.s is way more of a n+gga then henry. Besides that hayes called himself that.