WWE and ethnic characters

[Wrestlefan27]

I couldn't find a topic about this anywhere, but I think it's worth discussing.

After seeing the debut of Los Matadores last night, I was wondering how in the world these gimmicks are chosen. Is it just me, or does the WWE seem clueless about what to do with people of non-caucasian descent? Why does it seem that every person of non-caucasian ethnicity end up with a gimmick that is just a hyperbolic caricature or stereotype of his/her ethnicity?

Los Matadores, Epico, Primo, Hunico, Alberto Del Rio, The Mexicools, Cryme Tyme, Nation of Domination, Yokozuna (who wasn't even Japanese), the Orient Express, the Wild Samoans, Umaga, Kofi Kingston, R-Truth, etc...

Why does the WWE try to turn ethnicity into a gimmick? A person's race or nationality is not his/her defining characteristic. Do the writers not recognize this? Or are they just taking the easy road and being lazy? Is this how WWE brass really sees people of non-caucasian descent?

What do you all think? Is this something that's worth addressing?

 

[TempestH]

From what I see, WWE seems even more clueless about what to do with caucasian wrestlers. A stereotypical gimmick is SOMETHING, and as long as the wrestlers themselves aren't offended, it's okay.

To me it seems currently that the more "ethnic" lower card talents are given booking priority, while "generic white guys" such as Zack Ryder, Curt Hawkins, Alex Riley, Evan Bourne, and Tyson Kidd are seemingly left in the cold despite working hard to get better. It seems as if the higher ranking talents such as Cody Rhodes, Miz, or Dolph Ziggler already fill their "quota" and they have to "make room for the minorities" now. As a "minority" fan, the display of tokenism bugs me.

 

[Spidey Revivey]

They are actors meant to entertain.

Johnny Depp can play a Native American, John Wayne once played Genghis Khan, so why the hell would anyone care if a Samoan from San Fransisco played a Japanese Sumo wrestler?

Every wrestler that dons a gimmick that is part of another person's culture is just playing a character on a television show. Nobody takes that role seriously, and if they did, they need some help. The most respected superstar in the locker room is playing a walking corpse for Christ's sake. These are entertainers entertaining.

 

[cm ben]

I mean, even if it's not a person's defining characteristic, it's still a characteristic, it's the first characteristic another person sees, and it's one that is very easily understood.

You look at R-Truth, and what's the first thing you see? Oh, a black guy. Audiences, and more than that, societies automatically have assumptions about what a "black guy" is, and so it's easier for WWE exploit those automatic assumptions (stereotypes) than to create and explain a more complicated character.

Is it the easy way out? Yeah, definitely. And it's sort of a shame that they use it so much, because it doesn't leave the characters with much room to grow. In fact, R-Truth became 100000x more interesting when his character became a "conspiracy character guy" instead of a "black guy." TempestH, who made the point earlier in the thread about generic white wrestlers also being in a bad spot, is totally right. No room for the character to grow if your character is just an embodiment of what you look like.

My point here is that rather than overt racism, it's just uninspired writing (which results in indirect racism). Definitely worth addressing, though!

 

[MCMG]

If someone has a characteristic that can be used to enhance a gimmick or his career then why shouldn't they. It certainly isn't their defining characteristic but it is still one nonetheless. If they are really struggling to make someone unique then even something as a simple as making Kofi Kingston Jamaican can aid his career.

Not every single superstar that is an ethnic minority or non-American plays up to it. Big E, for example, has done nothing that I would say is deliberately different to how he would act if he was Caucasian. Initially I was thinking about The Rock and Mark Henry; however, they were in the nation of domination. It's almost as if it is a right of way for those who are non-Caucasian.

It is probably due to writers being lazy but unless it is detrimental to someone's career (which I can't think of an example of) then I am completely fine with it.

 

[backwardsrko]

Us Mexicans could care less what is thrown at the majority of us. If it concerns money, then we will do triple backflips for it. It doesnt matter of ethnics. Its all about the right price for the right product. Lets say for example , look at Rey Mysterio.... which was obviously the little bull from last night. How many years has Rey been wrestling for? Look at the stuff he does, its amazing. Hes mexican. Nowwwww look at the whitey ....Jeff Hardy. Yeah he does high flying moves and so on and so forth.... but when you look at him, he looks BROKEN! I mean look at him, he really does look broken. He looks like he drags himself to the ring. The difference is quality. Just like regular crystal meth , now compare it to Walter Whites(Heisenbergs) baby blue meth. Theres your comparisons.

Mexicans are better at "wrestling" thats why.
Whites are good on the mic.
Blacks , well...... ask John Cenas brother Darren Young.
Asians..... hmmmm I always wondered why they kept Yoshi in the back all the time.
UK's or whatever you want to call them, I dont see nothing in them but nasty accents and yellow teeth. Excuse Shaemus

 

[Slash-LN]

R Truth has been pretty much the same in both companies (WWE and TNA). Do you think that maybe it could just be an extension of who he is? Maybe he likes to rap and dance and felt like it would be a good way to connect with the audience?

As far as Cryme Time either Shad or JTG came up with the gimmick. I think it was JTG and Shad didn't want to do it but JTG talked him into it and they went and pitched it to Vince. I read an interview with Shad talking about it a few years back.

How is Alberto Del Rio a stereotype? When you think of a typical Mexican do you really think of them all being rich aristocrats?

It's not like white wrestlers haven't been saddled with crappy gimmicks Irwin R. Schyster, TL Hopper, Duke The Dumpster Droese, The Smoking Gunns, The Godwins and if you feel the need to have ADR on your list then Hunter Hearst Helmsley would count on this list. Jeff Jarrett is southern so he had to be a country singer right?

You say the Nation of Domination but three member of the original Nation were white. (The two members of PG 13 and Crush.)

I'm not saying it doesn't happen because we all know it does but don't act like it only happens with non-whites.

 

[FitFinlay4Life]

Meh - the ethnic groups get it easy, what about the poor Irish - we're all alcoholics who love fighting... I'm that depressed, I'm away to have a skin full and slap an eejit!!!

[YOUTUBE]ZD0BcQTIr4c[/YOUTUBE]​

Stereotypes are as old as wrestling, as long as they are not openly offensive (still hate the Sgt Slaughter traitor storyline to this day) why not have some fun?

 

[Tyrant25]

Stereotypes are societal creations that we choose to address. Who are we to say that Alberto Del Rio plays a stereotypical Mexican man, or R-Truth plays a stereotypical African-American man? If we don't look at them as stereotypes that it doesn't look as offensive. I think these men should be satisfied with having a spot on television.

 

[Suikervrij]

Meh - the ethnic groups get it easy, what about the poor Irish - we're all alcoholics who love fighting... I'm that depressed, I'm away to have a skin full and slap an eejit!!!

[YOUTUBE]ZD0BcQTIr4c[/YOUTUBE]​

Stereotypes are as old as wrestling, as long as they are not openly offensive (still hate the Sgt Slaughter traitor storyline to this day) why not have some fun?

At least the Irish get attention. Can't recall the latest big Dutch wrestler.

But seriously;
Ethnics are important and can appeal to a major group if utilised in the right way. Finlay has done it properly in the past, Jimmy Snooka had his background story and so on. It's not racism, it's trying to use a gimmick to reach a new audience or establish a better bond with the current audience.

The only problem I have with using an ethnic background in wrestling is when it is done poorly and predictable. Sure a stereotype can be fun but it shouldn't become a parody. Los Matadores for example don't strike me as being real bull fighters, nor will they ever. And there's a big list of wrestlers using their backgrounds but failing at giving it a little more depth. Why is ADR still in his current role? Why do we watch Sin Cara and Hunico?

There's nothing wrong with using ethnic groups but it shouldn't be the only thing to a character. And really the only one I can think of right now who does this well is Shaemus, out of all the WWE stars...

 

[lil bitch Kid]

The simplest answer is that it is a built in niche. The thing that you have to differentiate between is using ethnicity and perpetuating stereotypes. Calling Del Rio a Mexican Aristocrat is fine, because he's from Mexico and playing a character. Having the Mexicools being promoted as being from Mexico is fine, but having them ride around on a lawn mower is stupid. Yokozuna, even going back to his either NWA or AWA days always played a sumo because he was fat as fuck and had long black hair. The guy wasn't Japanese, but it fit a niche of needing a guy representing Japan. Eddie Guerrero was from Texas, but fit the mold of a Spanish speaking guy that could sweeten the crowd noise in the South.

None of this is new. The thing is that it becomes stupid when they perpetuate the stereotypes.

 

[CM Punk is a Jew]

This is a really stupid thread by an eternally-aggrieved minority who has taken one too many liberal arts community college courses.

The black wrestlers act black, the white wrestlers act white, the Mexican wrestlers act Mexican, and this is a problem because they aren't interchangeable enough? Didn't John Cena dress up like a wigger and rap for years, even as a main eventer? Isn't David Otunga a latte-sipping lawyer? Don't you remember a huge Jewish man coming out as Lord Tensai, master samurai?

OP would like to see a black wrestler doing a Jersey Shore gimmick, a skinny Mexican wrestler doing a sumo gimmick, a fat bearded white wrestler doing a luchadore gimmick, and only then will he be happy with his "equality". What if wrestling fans simply cheer for wrestlers who look and act like them, as opposed to Guy in Generic Tights and Boots #1000? The "PG Era" should not dumb itself down even further into the "PC Era".

 

[R.K.O]

WWE does tend to generalize and create characters based on stereotypes. Sometimes they don't even understand that country's culture much before creating the characters. I saw this top comment on WWE's youtube video of Los Matadores' debut and it says it all really. To quote him, he said that many of the Spanish are actually against bullfighting as they feel it's animal cruelty and is offended by the gimmick. I doubt he's the only one who feels that way and if that's true WWE could potentially have offended many people of the country and that's bad for business.

 

[HBKistheHOF]

It's not a matter of ethnicity, WWE plays off of archtypes & stereotypes all of the time, no matter what race a superstar is. They do it with caucasian superstars all the time; Red Neck, Hillbillies, White Rapper, USA/Military Supporter, Long Island Guido, Cowboys, Male Cheerleaders, Boy Band, The Flamboyant Ball Room Dancer, The Gay Lovers, The Transgender, The Metrosexual, The Cliche Fitness Instructors/Fitness Guru, The K-Fed Style White Background/Funk Dancers (or whatever Too Much/Too Cool was supposed to be), etc. Some of those may apply a little more directly than others to caucasian people but either way they were all portrayed by caucasian people & are extremly stereotypical.

WWE justs wants everyone to stand out & be larger than life & unfortunately sometimes they don't see much marketing value beyond a persons skin color or ethnicity. So especially when there are fewer people of color in the company it stands out when WWE constantly trys to capitalize on people ethnic background.

 

[lazeric]

The issue for me is not the characters themselves but the way that they are booked. Besides The Rock, ADR, and Mark Henry how many minority World Champions have there been in the past few years? Minorities arent looked at as World Champions therefore they get stuck in the mid card until they become so irrelevant that they get released. I mean a prime example currently is Big E Langston. He is currently the best monster in WWE yet he has no direction while a guy like Ryback( whom I like but Big E is leaps and bounds better) is involved in one of the biggest running programs in the business rite now. Ryback's involvement with the Heyman/Punk storyline could potentially push him into the main event or at the very least the upper mid card where he could be in the World title hunt while Big E either gets the jobber treatment or sent back to NXT to be repackaged. I mean look how long it took Mark Henry to become World Champ and even then he only become champ becuz there wasnt any other viable options at the time.

 

[Jstrike]

oh shut up bout racism! my gosh look at the white wrestlers, they either have a broski gimmick, or aint even shown in the wwe. mexican wrestl,ers wants the dumb mexican gimmicks cuz the mexicools sucked.
whats wrong with cryme tyme? their gang type? well wasnt john cena?
whats wrong with prime tyme playaz they say millons of dollars? well crap swagger says we the people. wwe gives everyone sucky gimmicks but good wrestlers can handle them gimmicks.
racism card should just stop.
the rock is part black and he's one of the biggest if not the biggest wrestler ever, rey mysterio & eddie guerreo are huge.
and booker t is a 5 time whc.
alberto has had how many whc's????????????????????????
shut up about stupid racism card. you shouldnt be pushed cuz ur color.
like the nfl says black people are just better than white boys when it comes to football i disagre with that, but in the wwe white guys are dominate over black guys! and its not cuz of their color its just i could name you every huge wretsler in past 40 years and over 90 percent is white.

 

[Wrestlefan27]

This is a really stupid thread by an eternally-aggrieved minority who has taken one too many liberal arts community college courses.

The black wrestlers act black, the white wrestlers act white, the Mexican wrestlers act Mexican, and this is a problem because they aren't interchangeable enough? Didn't John Cena dress up like a wigger and rap for years, even as a main eventer? Isn't David Otunga a latte-sipping lawyer? Don't you remember a huge Jewish man coming out as Lord Tensai, master samurai?

OP would like to see a black wrestler doing a Jersey Shore gimmick, a skinny Mexican wrestler doing a sumo gimmick, a fat bearded white wrestler doing a luchadore gimmick, and only then will he be happy with his "equality". What if wrestling fans simply cheer for wrestlers who look and act like them, as opposed to Guy in Generic Tights and Boots #1000? The "PG Era" should not dumb itself down even further into the "PC Era".

For the record, I am a 32 year old white male.

I am less concerned with the perpetuation of stereotypes (though it is a concern), than I am with the fact that these characters are given no depth. The problem, as some have already addressed, is that the characters' ethnicity or nationality is made the WHOLE of their identity. Many of them are not developed beyond that. The writers and performers are being lazy by limiting themselves and the product would be much better if they could expand instead of presenting one-dimensional characters.

 

[teddygreen17]

Its simple..the one thing about everything else in a predetermined sport that everyone clamors for is, believability.

 

[Da Solo]

WHO GIVES A SHIT? Seriously, WWE can have ethnic characters all they want. It's called a CHARACTER, meaning not all that real. As long as it's entertaining and isn't overtly racist, then ethnic-based characters are not a problem.

So what Cryme Tyme were caricatures of the most ratchet street thugs, but they were funny as hell, over as hell and managed to not become a parody of themselves.
So what Eddie Guerrero was WWE's latin knight in shining armor? If you read Eddie's book, he repped that shit as much as possible. There's no shame in being ethnic, and WWE shouldn't have to break their backs to prove they are above race by limiting what a nonwhite character can or can't do because of their skin.

The only 2 negative things WWE has ever done racially was Kerwin White (not because there was anything wrong with it, but because it was painful to watch) and letting HHH pin Booker after weeks of racial implications. Otherwise, no problem at all.