Impact Wrestling’s Gisele Shaw has taken to Twitter to accuse Rick Steiner of harassing her and berating her at WrestleCon.
Shaw said that Steiner verbally attacked her after an autograph signing.
“I was at an autograph signing today at Wrestlecon and while I was walking to my table, I hear someone yelling “you’re a man,” “you’re a dude,” you’re a piece of trash,” You are filth,” “get the f–k away from here,” she wrote.
Shaw continues saying she is unfortunately used to such hate and just walked away, ignored the derogatory comments.
“I spoke to another Impact Wrestling talent who was at the signing with me and mentioned the incident. It didn’t sit well with me and I wanted to know who was saying that because it’s unacceptable, so I decided to take a walk in that area and I hear that same person saying the same derogatory comments,” she continued.
Shaw was stunned to discover it was WWE Hall of Famer Rick Steiner who was spouting such hate.
“I was in disbelief so I asked him, “excuse me?!” He kept repeating those hateful phrases and started yelling at me in a public setting. It was inexcusable and unacceptable!” she wrote.
To make matters worse, Shaw claims other wrestling legends saw what was happening and didn’t say or do anything.
“I am not writing this because I want sympathy. I am writing this because I am done being bullied to silence. Today is International Transgender Day of Visibility and I am standing up for myself and for other people who go through the exact same situation on a daily basis. I want everyone to know what kind of a deplorable person Rick Steiner is and that this cannot be tolerated. This keeps happening because people let it slide and do not take any action. If you do business with these [types] of people then I will not do business with you,” she wrote.
Shaw did thank her Impact peers who stepped in and tried to stop what was happening.
“I am very fortunate to be working alongside such incredible people in a company that has no room for hate, bullying or judgment. We’re not just co-workers, but a family,” she wrote.
Neither Wrestlecon nor Rick Steiner have commented on the incident.
TOP PHOTO: Gisele Shaw at The Asylum WrestleBash ’22 on Saturday, August 20, 2022, at the Police Athletic League in Parsippany, New Jersey. Photo by George Tahinos, https://georgetahinos.smugmug.com.
RELATED LINKS
- Sep. 19, 2022: Gisele Shaw on coming out and coming up in Impact Wrestling
- June 24, 2022: Gisele Shaw comes out as transgender
- Steiner Brothers story archive