Fred Rosser On Representation In More Companies: There Is Still Work To Be Done
Fred Rosser (Darren Young in WWE) was the first openly gay superstar in WWE.
Rosser had some success in WWE as a WWE Tag Team Champion and has continued that success outside of the company as a mainstay for NJPW Strong.
Always representing the LGBTQ community, Rosser spoke to Alfred Konuwa of Forbes about representation throughout wrestling.
“There’s a lot of work to go,” said Rosser. “We need more reps, we need more reps at representation, we need more athletes speaking out. Being the first openly gay WWE Superstar, I have a duty to instill confidence in our youth and to lead by example. I’m not a social media type of person where I just talk about it, I go to the school before the pandemic, I speak to fifth graders, I speak to organizations like Viacom, I work with organizations like the Covenant House in LA that deals with LGBTQ homeless youth—42% of it—so I’m always grinding away. I’m not a doctor, I’m not a psychiatrist but I am a friend. That’s why I call myself the Suntan Superman. I’ve got to be a support system, a beacon of hope for not only the LGBTQ, not only the African-American, not only the Asian community but all communities.”
Rosser is set to team with Wheeler Yuta & Rocky Romero to take on Ren Narita, Clark Connors & TJP at NJPW Resurgence. You can view the current lineup for Resurgence by clicking here.
Fightful spoke to Rosser for its enhancement stories series. You can find his story by clicking here.
