Tuesday, September 30, 2014

Don't Be a Lemon, Be a Civil Rights Leader

Photo Credit: WWE.com

Jesse Jackson showing up to RAW is surreal enough. I'm always amazed at the width and breadth of celebrity fans WWE attracts, but regardless of your opinion on Jackson (spoiler alert, he's super-polarizing), one might find it shocking that he would enjoy pro wrestling. Maybe anyone can like wrestling, but it's the years of savage societal messaging that it's a sport for hillbillies, babies, and the lower castes that have beaten me down to expect guys like Larry the Cable Guy or Antoine Dodson. IN reality, even WWE can border on the full artistic potential of the art, even if it's not all that often.

But I digress. The fact that Jackson had a photo op with what amounts to an employed furry is wrestling at its most absurd. Quite frankly, I wish more wrestling promotions would embrace wrestling's surrealistic side. Chikara, Inter Species Wrestling, and DDT in Japan thrive on that side of the edge. Obviously, wrestling ants and active competitors that also happen to be sex toys might not fit in WWE in any situation, but I'm still glad that the company delves into the weird and wonderful enough that the above picture is made possible.