Tessa Blanchard has broken her silence on allegations that she used racist language during a confrontation with a fellow wrestler.
On Jan. 11, Allysin Kay alleged Tessa spat on a female wrestler and called her the N-word during a past altercation. It was later revealed/confirmed that the wrestler was La Rosa Negra and the incident took place in 2017. Blanchard denied the allegations. Other wrestlers stepped forward and accused Blanchard of bullying in the past as well.
Blanchard remained silent on the allegations despite being in the spotlight as she won the IMPACT World Title at Hard To Kill. On Thursday night, she posted the following statement.
Over the last week I have been accused of calling a fellow wrestler a racial slur. To read this allegation has been personally upsetting. To be clear, I absolutely did not use that word. That word is not in my vocabulary. That word is not in my heart. Racism is not in my heart.
Yet I know many people have to deal with racism in a way I will never have to. Racism is an awful part of American history, and it is equally awful that it's still part of our society today. While I did not do what was claimed, I stand ready to use my platform to support the fight against racism however I can.
I hope everyone will take a moment to read this. pic.twitter.com/gRPUlCYd6a
— Tessa Blanchard (@Tess_Blanchard) January 17, 2020
Blanchard did not address the bullying allegations in her statement. Following her victory at Hard To Kill, she admitted that "nobody is perfect" in a post-match promo, but did not outright mention the allegations. You can find her full comments by clicking here.
La Rosa Negra commented on the situation as well, but did not specifically mention Tessa's name. You can find her comments by clicking here. Fightful Select also has a ton of notes on the situation, with more coming.
