WWE’s “Unleash Your Warrior” campaign as part of the company’s work with the Susan G. Komen Foundation is questioned in a new Vice.com story. The Vice piece lists Warrior’s quotes on labeling Bobby Heenan suffering throat cancer as karma; his anti-homosexual rants; his shots against Hurricane Katrina victims; his rant on the the late Dr. Martin Luther King.
Dana Warrior issued the following statement to Vice regarding her late husband. “”I will not be disloyal to my husband’s memory or speak ill of a man who is not here to defend himself. I can, however, tell you his heart was changed by conversations with his two daughters. The true testament of the man behind the character is his ability to evolve. My husband did just that.”
WWE released the following statement to Vice on their use of Ultimate Warrior in the campaign. “WWE’s ‘Unleash Your Warrior’ breast cancer awareness campaign and annual ‘Warrior Award’ recognize individuals that exhibit the strength and courage of WWE’s legendary character The Ultimate Warrior. Any attempt to distract from the mission of these initiatives and take the spotlight away from the honorees is unfortunately misguided.” Read the full story at Vice.com.
Powell’s POV: Wade Keller and I discussed this matter and Warrior’s quotes on the October 26 edition of his PodcastOne.com Podcast. While one can only hope that Warrior truly had a change of heart, he never acknowledged it publicly. Meanwhile, WWE’s claim of their campaign focussing on the character rather than the man is predictable. As I mentioned on Thursday, it will be interesting to see if fans in the WrestleMania host city of New Orleans accept that defense should the local media picks up the story regarding Warrior’s comments about Katrina victims.
Susan B. Common foundation isn’t without controversy themselves–especially their donations to Planned “Parenthood.” This social justice warrior nonsense and desire to tear everything down that may have some virtue is one of the blights of the 21st Century. I do not condone Warrior’s comments (in fact, I’ve only heard of them in passing), but this absurd desire to tear down anything positive is beyond the pale. Frankly, I’m sick of seeing everything pink in October. It’s jumped the shark. But c’mon, anything that encourages the irradiation of a terrible disease isn’t all bad.
It won’t matter with New Orleans as WrestleMania crowds are so diverse, a fraction of that crowd will be local.
Warrior was a gigantic piece of garbage, and his wife was and still is clearly brainwashed by him. Maybe it was Stockholm Syndrome.