In recent months, the professional wrestling world has raised discussions about Black representation, or in some cases lack thereof, in various promotions. AEW Wrestling Administration Coordinator Will Washington sat down Instinct Culture’s own Denise Salcedo to talk about the topic as well, particularly as it relates to All Elite Wrestling.
According to Washington, representation is at its best when it feels natural, not when it feels forced.
“The interesting thing about representation is that I’ve always been an advocate for representation, but specifically when it feels organic,” Washington said. “I never want representation to simply be there to check a box. I never want it to be a case where when we fill out a card, ‘Oh, did we get a Black wrestler here? Did we get a Latino wrestler here?’ You get what I’m saying, right? I never want it to be that. And the cool thing about the creative process in AEW is that it has never been that.”
To illustrate AEW’s handling of representation, Washington pointed toward the lineup for AEW’s WrestleDream pay-per-view, which took place on October 12. This specific lineup featured several Black talents, including Willow Nightingale, Swerve Strickland, MVP, Shelton Benajmin, and Private Party (Isiah Kassidy and Marq Quen), the latter of whom now reign as the AEW World Tag Team Champions.
“When you just think about the idea that at no point was it said that we need to have these people on the show because they’re Black. They happen to be Black and got there — that is representation in action,” Washington said. “That is where representation succeeds, is when you’re not just looking to fill a role. That is tokenism, and that’s not what we’re after. What Black people and Black wrestling fans are truly looking for is just the idea of seeing yourself as just as much a part of the show as anybody else, that when a Black wrestler gets over, when a Black wrestler is connecting with the fans, when a Black wrestler is connecting with the audience, they should be afforded the exact same opportunity that a White wrestler who connected the same way does. That’s what’s being looked for.”
Looking Beyond The Surface
In general, should anyone feel underrepresented on a professional wrestling show, Washington suggests looking beyond the surface, specifically inward, to answer the important question of why.
“Is it because the talent pool isn’t there? And then if you look and you say, well, obviously the talent pool is there, then is it because they’re not being utilized the way I would like to see them utilized? Well, how would you like to see them utilized? It has to go a little bit further than simply saying, ‘I want Black people on the show, so put Black people on the show,'” Washington said.
Watch Denise’s full interview with Will Washington below: