The Speaking Out series will cover the recent revelations in the professional wrestling community regarding grotesque sexual misconduct, manipulation, and abuses of power. Those not in the wrestling community will have their identities protected, and survivors were not contacted for comment to prevent them from having to revisit trauma. The series can be seen the following [2]
The Sexual Violence Pandemic
According to the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN), an average of 433,648 individuals (12 and older) are survivors of rape and sexual assault each year in the United States. The U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics Criminal Victimization, 2018 September 2019 report states approximately 734,630 people in the United States were either raped, escaped attempted rape, or were threatened with such throughout 2018. Of note, the numbers are likely underrepresented statistically.
The Prevalence and Characteristics of Sexual Violence, Stalking, and Intimate Partner Violence Victimization — National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey, United States, 2011 published in September 2014 states, “In the United States, an estimated 19.3% of women and 1.7% of men have been raped during their lifetimes; an estimated 1.6% of women reported that they were raped in the 12 months preceding the survey.”
The National Sexual Violence Resource Center (NSVRC) adds further details to the sexual violence pandemic in the United States. “One in five women and one in 71 men will be raped at some point in their lives,” and “91% of the victims of rape and sexual assault are female, and 9% are male.”
Rape Crisis cites the Crime Survey for England and Wales March 2017 survey which estimates, “20% of women and 4% of men have experienced some type of sexual assault since the age of 16, equivalent to 3.4 million female and 631,000 male victims,” and “3.1% of women (510,000) and 0.8% of men (138,000) aged 16 to 59 had experienced a sexual assault in the last year.”
Speaking Out Begins, David Starr Flees Twitter
On June 17th, allegations regarding David Starr committing intimate partner rape against an ex-girlfriend drew attention in wrestling circles on Twitter. Since multiple other women who were in relationships with Starr told similar haunting stories of abuse and manipulation, unfortunately, this was not the first time accusations were brought to light — previously they were ignored by the wrestling community as a whole.
Speaking concerning his actions in the past, Starr (Max Barsky) plotted using what he deemed the ‘Aziz Ansari thing’ as a way to defend himself if his career was ever in jeopardy over his actions. It’s unlikely Starr knew the full story, as it did not involve rape. Despite that, Starr felt that because he was in the relationship at the time of the assault the unrelated incident with Ansari would provide him cover.
Before Starr deleted his Twitter, he made several tweets including towards the woman in question where he accused her of leaking his nude photographs on the internet, there was no evidence nor record other than Starr’s word that such pictures were leaked.
In a string of tweets Starr oddly decided to spend money on to promote, he denied intimate partner rape, and immediately switched the topic to his own perceived personal growth.
Shortly after suffering severe backlash on Twitter, Starr deleted his account and hasn’t been heard from publicly since. In a deleted tweet that was not obtained, but was seen by the reporting journalist, Starr did make an admission of grey rape. However, that was denied by the survivor who states there was a clear and obvious “No” present (depicted above and further expounded upon later).
Several other survivors have come forward to share their experiences with Starr in the past.
The Speaking Out campaign continues and is already bringing sweeping changes to how independent promotions operate around the world.
If You Would Like To Speak To Someone About Sexual Assualt The Following Resources Are Available
Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (United States)
Contact information for David Starr could not be found to ask him for comments relating to his actions detailed in this report.
