SoCal Val Says Stigma Surrounding WWE Divas Is 'Anti-Feminist'
Former IMPACT Wrestling personality SoCal Val has disputed the notion that "Divas" can no longer thrive in the current climate of women's wrestling, arguing that there's still a place in the business for female valets and the genre of women's wrestling that existed pre-2015.
"I have no idea why anyone thought that [Diva] was a negative term," Val told "Just Alyx" in a recent interview. "A diva, to me, was always a very empowering term. I would never be in wrestling if it wasn't for the WWE Divas era. And I don't mean that just in terms of matches. With all due respect, I would have never been in wrestling if it was just serious wrestlers.
"With all due respect to AJ Lee and others who are just casually dressed, and are not super-sparkly and glamorous – those aren't my type of girls. I wanted to be a Torrie [Wilson] or a Sunny, I wanted to do the modeling shoots, I wanted to do the interviews and managing [the wrestlers] and things like that."
Val then pointed out how WWE's "Divas Search" talent competition provided the likes of Michelle McCool, Maryse, Maria Kanellis, Christy Hemme and Candice Michelle an opportunity to break into the business.
"The fact that we can't look at that period of time and go, 'there were some great people in that era' is really [unfortunate]," Val admitted. "People forget how many great talents came out of the Divas Search. Now, did it get a little out-of-hand with gravy matches and jelly pool matches? Sure. But when I wanted to wrestle at all, I wanted to be in an evening gown or lingerie match. I wanted to exude this sort of powerful sexuality, this feminism, that I thought was really empowering.
"So it's a shame for me to hear that people don't like it when we call them divas. Now, did I like it when the belt was a butterfly [design]? I thought that was a little stupid; but the term diva, to me personally, was very empowering. So I find it very interesting that people have such a vitriolic heat against that term. That was my era! And because I didn't want to physically wrestle, these were my girls!"
'Feminism Is About Supporting Women's Choices'
Speaking further on her favorites from WWE's Divas Era, SoCal Val admitted that she could no longer relate to Trish Stratus when the WWE Hall of Famer evolved from a valet to a "serious wrestler" in 2002.
"When she was a manager for T&A [Test and Albert], that's when I really connected with her," Val stressed. "When she became a serious wrestler, and I mean this with all due respect, I couldn't relate as much. Even with Lita, I couldn't relate as much. I didn't want to be taken seriously as a female wrestler. I do think it's great that they have that [option], but it's not what I personally wanted to do."
Val then explained why it's "anti-feminist" for anyone to expect all female wrestlers to focus solely on their in-ring craft.
"So the fact that we can't have both [serious female wrestling and glamorous divas] now, I feel like, is very anti-feminist," Val said. "In the sense that, feminism is about having freedom of choice. And if my choice wasn't to be an athletic, super serious wrestler, that's my choice!
"If my choice was to be sexy and a diva-type, that's my choice. Feminism is about supporting women's choices. So you can't sit there and say 'if you weren't a serious wrestler, you didn't contribute to the business.' People like Sunny, Sable, Torrie Wilson, and Candice Michelle, these women were my idols. So I find it very interesting that people have such an issue with the Divas Era because if there was no Divas Era, I would have lost interest immediately."
The #GiveDivasAChnce Movement
WWE's Divas Era officially ended on July 13, 2015, when WWE started referring to the former Divas as Superstars. On an episode of "Raw" that night, Stephanie McMahon would introduce the "NXT" trio of Charlotte Flair, Becky Lynch and Sasha Banks to the main roster, changing the landscape of the WWE's women's division forever.
Although WWE didn't change its presentation of women's wrestling until July 2015, the seeds for the "Women's Revolution" were planted following the Feb. 23, 2015 episode of "Raw" where a match pitting The Bella Twins against Paige & Tenille Dashwood lasted all of 29 seconds. Shortly thereafter, AJ Lee, Paige, and others took to social media to support the #GiveDivasAChance movement, with Lee even calling out Stephanie McMahon for the underutilization of female wrestlers on WWE TV. The moment picked up steam when former WWE CEO & Chairman Vince McMahon took to Twitter and encouraged fans to let their voices be heard.
Since that landmark moment, women have main evented WrestleMania on two separate occasions – WrestleMania 35 and WrestleMania 37 – and continue to be positioned as top Superstars in WWE. It is widely rumored that Becky Lynch vs. Ronda Rousey will be one of the main events of next year's WrestleMania 39.
If you use any quotes from this article, please credit "Just Alyx" with an h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription