The opinions shared in this article belong to its author and do not reflect the consensus of the BodySlam staff.

 

Try these shoes on: You’re a performer, with a huge stage to apply your craft. People cheer for you. They wear clothes designed in your image. There are signs they hold up and merchandise of you that they carry. You feel good, flattered, if you’re not used to it. Alternatively, you’re almost numb to it by now, but you’re still appreciative, because these people are the reason you get to live this life. And then it happens. They cross a boundary. Swarming their golden gods, they shove photos, merchandise, and toys, demanding talents sign them. Phones are pulled out for selfies and candid photos. For professional wrestling talents, this is an encounter they face all too often across their travels.

 

Recently, during WrestleMania 42 weekend, that was the case. In Las Vegas, fans overwhelmed the talents. Booker T had fans follow him into the bathroom, according to his Reality of Wrestling podcast. Bayley and AJ Lee tried to share a quiet, emotional moment, likely before parting ways; Lee had an emotional title loss at the Showcase of the Immortals. CM Punk had to step in, confronting the fan and slapping the phone out of his hands.

 

https://x.com/TMZ/status/2046219652762567025?s=20

 

It’s a tale as old as time. Wrestlers post about it all the time, asking fans not to cross boundaries so they can simply go about their day. The show is over; there’s no meet-and-greet or convention. All there is is moving from one place to another or ordering something for the road. Sure, they’re happy to see viewers admire their work. A lot goes into it. For every botch, there’s a move that was executed to surgical precision. Promos are delivered in the hopes that their charisma will funnel into the fans’ subconscious, as wrestling psychologically does.

 

In that is a catharsis. But that line between performer and spectator is sacred, unless otherwise invited in.

 

Nobody wants to be made anxious about such a predicament. Going outside shouldn’t necessitate a horde of people frothing at the mouth for an interaction. Sadly, it doesn’t work that way. Having a life outside of home and the squared circle is mostly a risk, one that talents might not be fully equipped to handle.

 

This follows everyone. Most often, though, it happens to women.

 

I don’t think I need to explain how women are often overcrowded, regardless of their following. Even if they’re not trying to present themselves as someone to gaze at, it still happens, regardless of the gender assigned to the fans that follow them, mostly male. Provided the societal treatment of women since the dawn of time, this doesn’t stop at signing things or taking selfies.

 

Women wrestlers are often the prime targets. No matter what percentage of skin is showing, they have a line that fans should not cross. It happens anyway. They could dress modestly, outside of their gear, in ways that heavily mute the features that are subject to such ogling. It still happens anyway. Not having the autonomy to dress however one wants without worrying about the intrusive hands of unwanted hands, it’s a scary existence.

 

CM Punk shouldn’t have had to step in for AJ Lee and Bayley. The man who invaded the house of Daria Rae (formerly WWE’s Sonya DeVille) in Summer 2020 shouldn’t have happened. Rhea Ripley shouldn’t need to take to X and ask fans to breach her orbit to sign their stuff, or for people not to send things to her personal home address. Asuka has also reported that she’s afraid of being around fans because of the same treatment and those trying to romantically engage with her.

 

I recognize that many of these wrestlers are incredibly successful, and that there is a litany of other bad things happening in the world. Poverty, evil billionaires, bigotry, and global warming. That said, entertainers should not have to beg for people to recognize them as people, not idols to be worshipped.

 

Women in general should not have to live their lives with their heads on a swivel. Why else do would they hope to have a partner or friend in their life, so that they can turn their brain off in public? What other reason are they afraid to go out alone at night? Only then will they not need to answer “man or bear” with the latter.

 

And now I move onto the recent topic of Elayna Black (formerly Cora Jade of WWE), that same WrestleMania 42 weekend at WrestleCon. A man groped her without consent and attempted to walk off. She took out her phone, recorded a video of his face as she confronted him. Largely, she received support for standing up for herself.

 

https://x.com/KCwrestles/status/2045573510039568598?s=20

 

Yet others were jumping to defend her harasser. Chief among these responses were people decrying her OnlyFans career, as though that justified his actions. She, as a wrestler, is free to handle her own branding just as her male peers are.

 

Under no circumstances, and I mean in no uncertain terms, is it okay to touch anyone or make any comment that would make them uncomfortable. That includes performers and people in our daily lives. But it also extends to NSFW content creators, adult film stars, and dancers at strip clubs. Everyone should be free from inappropriate handling. Everyone. Yes, even you. Without enthusiastic consent, this is disgusting behavior. People, decent people, should never act like this.

 

In terms of sex workers or anything adjacent, once they stop performing for the screen or on a stage, that’s where it ends. The nature of their profession is not an invitation to treat them however anyone pleases. What consenting adults do with partners or people they share intimacy or desires with is their business. It’s no different from anyone who doesn’t have that career. I might add that if it weren’t for men lusting after and treating women as sexual objects in the first place, this career might not exist in the first place. Supply and demand. 

 

If it bothers a fan so much, my advice is this: stay away from it. Turn that phone off. Block it from personal social media. But do not condone this. Otherwise, it’s all men until women can feel safe and secure around men. 

 

This also applies to male victims and victims outside of the gender binary. No one should be made to fear their surroundings.

 

But I expect people to continue vehemently defending harassing and assaulting people. These are the types of people who women will cross the street just to avoid.

 

Returning to the message at hand, there’s a parasocial nature to interactions that creates, nurtures, and perpetuates the interactions that leave wrestlers exhausted, or worse, afraid.

 

 

All of those stories about wrestlers, actors, and musicians acting grumpily, at times angrily, at fans can be attributed to the lack of space and respect. Nobody should have to see John Cena calmly, yet visibly irritatedly ask fans to respect his privacy and boundaries. Chappel Roan’s enforcement of her line between her time away from music to be mired with constant interactions with strangers should not warrant controversy.

 

Existing abroad in the public eye is not permission. If any celebrity, be they online, in wrestling, or in pop culture, welcomes an interaction, leave it at what they are willing to allow. Then leave it at that. If they don’t offer it, leave them alone. The interaction between performer and fan starts and stops at that moment, unless both parties agree to continue it. 

 

In a perfect world, educating people on etiquette, on treating others respectfully, would alleviate so much of this. Unfortunately, we don’t live in such a world. Empathy is but a foreign concept for people who don’t step out of their own shoes.

 

Circling back to WrestleMania 42 and the flood of fans that left wrestlers with a negative experience, the last and most crucial aspect to consider is security.

 

Throughout that weekend, it was noted that the local security at Las Vegas’s MGM Grand wasn’t equipped for the influx of fans. When Fightful Select released their report on WWE and hotel security, they painted a dismal picture that highlights the unsafe environment of simply staying at a place to unwind and rest.

 

Factoring in that Vegas hotel security already has far more to deal with, it would make sense that a multi-billion-dollar corporation like TKO, and by extension WWE, would heighten security for the people who make their product work in the first place.

 

There’s a lot to weigh in on how fans treat talent. Many are socially unaware (either by lack of education, social conditioning, or lacking socially cognitive skills), while others are predatory. From the lustful fans to the ones who would exploit their own children to get something signed, it’s disturbing that these people operate in such a way. Additionally, some of these fans are trying to take shortcuts to meet and get things signed due to WWE’s current business model already overprices almost everything from merch to tickets to meet-and-greets.

 

But the company should be held responsible for the fans’ handling of talents in public. Surely, with WrestleManias and Royal Rumbles being held in Saudi Arabia from the pocket of royalty, WWE could afford this. Surely, with the high costs of being a fan, WWE could afford this. Surely, from cutting talent, WWE could feasibly afford to ensure the safety of its most essential contributors.

 

With the wealth the company touts, it begs the question: at what length would the company go to ensure the proper satisfaction of fans and talent alike?

 

Considering how they value their bottom dollar, I think I know the answer.