The revelation
came as the wrestler was asked about a recent incident in which a fan
was heard shouting a homophobic slur at him during a match.
The fan was
heard on AEW Dynamite shouting
“f**king f*g” at Bowens as he competed in an eight-man tag match alongside his
Acclaimed teammate Max Caster on 9 December.
Speaking
to TMZ
Sports about the incident, the 30-year-old explained:
“Unfortunately, that kind of stuff comes with the territory, being out LGTBQ
athlete. This is actually the first time I’ve audibly heard something like that
during a performance or television.
“It’s not
indicative of the AEW fans at all because any interaction I’ve had with them
since starting the company has all been positive. It’s the first time it’s happened
in that sense.”
Anthony Bowens
then revealed the platform where he more regularly encounters homophobic abuse
as he continued: “I have really thick skin and I’m kind of used to it… My
boyfriend Michael and I, we have our own
YouTube channel and when we first started that, the comments were
brutal. I can’t even repeat them. We’re kind of used to that.
“There’s
always one person who oversteps the line and this time it was picked up on
camera and I’m kind of glad it was because it amplifies the message that we
still have work to do, but it also shows there is so much positivity out there
from the response, which as awesome to see.”
The
wrestler, who
came out as gay in 2019, continues to brush off the abuse he receives as he
continues to campaign for LGBT+ visibility in sports.
Indeed, he
went viral earlier this month after sharing a defiant
picture of him kissing his YouTube star boyfriend in front of a crowd
of Christian homophobes.
Anthony Bowens
made his professional wrestling debut in 2013 after playing baseball in college
and signed a five-year contract with All Elite Wrestling in 2020.
He came out as
bisexual and began dating Pavano in 2017, before later coming out as gay in
2019.
The wrestler
told Sports Illustrated in 2019: “I’m representing the LGBT+
community and athletes that are LGBT+, but even more than that, too. I’m
representing the small-town kid who was told he’d never make it, and I’m here
for the shy kid that is ready to burst out of his shell and be that social
butterfly.
“To know that
I’m having a positive impact on people is a blessing, and makes me feel that I
made the right decision to come out.”
SOURCE: PINK NEWS
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