AEW News: Videos Emerge Of Top Announcer Using Racial Slurs
As documented by Ringside News, videos of AEW’s Excalibur, in which he can be heard using the N-word, have emerged online. Both of these instances were part of in-character wrestling promos from his in-ring days on the independent circuit. However, the videos have since been making the rounds and the announcer is being criticized.
In the footage, Excalibur can be heard using the racial slur with an “a” at the end, but in the second video he utters it with a hard “r.” The first instance was an attempt at humor, but the follow-up video — which was at a non-televised event — was an effort to draw heat from the fans.
Kevin Owens was also featured in one of the clips, and he used the N-word after Excalibur. In another segment, Excalibur also directed a racial slur at a Latin American opponent.
The videos also caught the attention of AJ Gray, a Black independent wrestler who’s been critical of AEW lately, as he believes there is a lack of diversity on the roster. He was upset by the latest development and took to social media to make his thoughts known.
Addressing a now-deleted post, wrestling news outlet SoCalUncensored’s Twitter account noted that the idea was suggested to Excalibur by Tornado. However, Gray responded by saying that, even if he was acting, that doesn’t “make it any better.”
As the Ringside News report highlighted, some social media users have also called out AEW. Since its inception, the company has prided itself on being inclusive and progressive. This latest controversy goes against those principles, according to some Twitter commenters.
Others wondered if the company will take action against the announcer, especially since the comments came out while the Black Lives Matter movement has been making headlines for calling out racial injustice in recent months.
The Excalibur clips have arrived in the wake of other controversial comments made by the promotion’s stars. As The Inquisitr recently reported, Sammy Guevara was suspended after podcasts of him making insensitive remarks about WWE’s Sasha Banks resurfaced.
Guevara was subsequently suspended without pay and ordered to take sensitivity training. He returned to television on the latest episode of Dynamite.
Officials have already shown that they don’t ignore this type of behavior, and they do take action. However, the insults made by Excalibur were similar to the same slurs that resulted in Hulk Hogan being banned from ever working with the company. However, Hogan’s comments weren’t part of a wrestling storyline.
