WWE Stars Celebrate Black History Month With The Wrestling Club

By Sean Neumann
Big E with wide eyes WWE

To celebrate Black History Month, WWE stars Big E, Titus O'Neil, Shelton Benjamin, and Cedric Alexander surprised a group of young students — and diehard wrestling fans — at KIPP AMP Middle School in Brooklyn last week. Known as The Wrestling Club, the middle schoolers have grown a bit famous in recent years for their teacher Victor Taylor Perry's efforts to show kids a wealth of different professional wrestling and foster their love for this particular form of entertainment. Along the way, other wrestlers have popped in to surprise the kids, talking to the kids about their journey to the squared circle while also taking photos with their new fans. 

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WWE released a video of last week's big reveal, which also came with an invitation from the WWE Superstars who made the trip for TWC to attend "WWE Raw" this past Monday at the Barclays Center. The visit occurred amidst some Black History Month homework the kids had to put in — all wrestling-related, of course.

"For this month, I really wanted to do a really special Black History Month project where kids got to select a Black male or female that has impacted their life and shown them what Black excellence is," Perry explained. "They're sharing amazing stories and testimonies that I just have to share because sometimes you don't think about the impact that you have and how you're changing someone's life by simply following your own dreams."

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The WWE stars spoke with the students while several of the kids shared book reports about the wrestlers, telling them how they've helped inspire them to chase their own dreams. "To understand that what we do actually has an effect on young people, it just really meant a lot to me," Big E said. "I never imagined that one day I would be in a classroom and there would be a book report about me unless it was my kid and I forced them to write it about me, but yeah, it was very touching and it meant a lot to me."

Benjamin said he "got a little choked up" when another student read a report about him, and Alexander said it was "one of the things that helps you go, 'I just want to do a little bit more and go the extra mile.'"

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