They say ‘never meet your heroes,’ and maybe that’s true. But maybe ‘never tweet your heroes’ should be a saying as well because it seems like, all too often, our heroes disappoint us. That’s what happened on Sunday to a fan who was just looking for a little inspiration.
CJ Perry, who wrestled in WWE under the name Lana from 2013-2021, has been in the news as rumors continue to swirl that she’ll be joining her husband Miro in AEW. While fans may be looking forward to the on-screen reunion of The Redeemer and his ‘Woman,’ off-screen Perry has lost the respect of many fans. On Sunday night, after posting what was supposed to be an inspirational message on Twitter, fan responded to Perry with the story of his own struggle.
A man name Adam replied to the comment, stating that it was “hard to keep going when you’re homeless. Everyone ignores you. Everything is a reminder of what you once had.” The good news is that Perry didn’t ignore him. The bad news is that her response was much, much worse.
Instead of trying to empathize with the man, Perry instead opted to Quote Tweet him, stating “you have a device to tweet from.” Again, Perry would eventually delete her comment, and the entire thread, but not before eagle-eyed Twitter users screenshotted her comment.
“CJ Perry is gross for this,” one Twitter user stated.
Another user simply said, ‘Trash.’
Bodyslam reached out to the man to find out his side of the story.
“It was one of those inspirational posts about never giving up in the face of adversity; that kind of thing. The only reason I replied to it, is because I was having a bad day. I was hoping for, maybe, some kind words. Instead I got…that.”
What Lana may not have known is that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has created the ‘Lifeline’ program, to offer those struggling with poverty the opportunity to sign up for affordable phone services.
“Lifeline is the FCC’s program to help make communications services more affordable for low-income consumers,” the FCC wrote on their website. “Lifeline provides subscribers a discount on qualifying monthly telephone service, broadband Internet service, or bundled voice-broadband packages purchased from participating wireline or wireless providers. The discount helps ensure that low-income consumers can afford 21st century broadband and the access it provides to jobs, healthcare, and educational resources.”
More often than not, those struggling with poverty have a cell phone. This is used to seek employment, find places to live, communicate with friends and family, and more. It’s hard, if not impossible, to get a job if you don’t have a number for people to call and schedule an interview and/or make a job offer.
So, yes. Adam had a cellphone. He wasn’t asking for much else. He didn’t want a handout. He didn’t ask Perry for Miro’s autograph so that he could sell it on Ebay. All he wanted was maybe, just maybe, a kind word from a person with a little bit of influence.
“I bear no ill will toward CJ Perry,” Adam said. “I just hope she takes time to really realize that, no matter how much you have or don’t have, we’re all still human beings, and we should treat each other as such.”
Adam said that he’s been in contact with rent relief programs that will help him find a more permanent place to live. He also said he’s sent his resume out and applied “everywhere with a ‘Help Wanted’ sign.” We asked him if he had a Venmo or a Cashapp, and he replied that he did- here and here, if any of our readers would be open to donating.
“There have been plenty of nights where I thought about giving up,” he said. “Throwing in the towel. But I’m still here. It can’t be like this forever, and I’m not going down without a fight.”
We’ve all struggled. We’ve all fought. We’ve all been in places we never thought we’d be in. Because of that, most of us know that it doesn’t take much to make somebody’s day better. Maybe we don’t have a few dollars to spare to the person on the corner, but we can offer a smile, or a kind word. We can make eye contact because, a lot of the time, these people just want to be seen. They want to be acknowledged.
Maybe this will be a lesson for Perry. Or maybe she’ll just ignore it and move on with her life. But Adam will remember this exchange for the rest of his life. But hopefully, he can remember these words, too: Adam, we see you. We acknowledge you. You are still a human being. You are worthy. You are loved.
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