Fitness influencer Joey Swoll has taken to social media with a wordy apology after posting a picture of himself imitating the late wrestler Hulk Hogan (born Terry Gene Bollea) and defending it despite rampant backlash.
In the video in which he can be seen backpaddling on his previous adamant stance, Swoll also uses the opportunity to say “I am sorry” for using the term “colored” instead of saying “person of color.”
Highlights
- Joey Swoll posted a tribute video in a Hulk Hogan costume the day the wrestler passed away.
- He apologized after criticism for defending Hogan and using the term “colored.”
- Some fans praised the apology, while others accused Swoll of caving to “wokeness.”
Fans have since responded, with a faction of commenters claiming they are more offended by the apology to people who are “woke” and “too sensitive.”
Joey Swoll says he did not know the “extent [of] all the horrible things” Hulk Hogan “had done”
Image credits: joeyswoll
“I apologize to my followers, my community, and social media. A few days ago, I posted an old video of me in the gym wearing a Hulk Hogan Halloween costume on the day he passed.
“Last night in my live stream, a lot of people expressed how upset and frustrated they were with me that I had posted that,” he said, as a nod to the reason for his address.
Image credits: hulkhogan
“Instead of listening and understanding like I should have, I became defensive and said that I was posting to celebrate the wrestling icon; the person that so many of us looked up to as kids, that we grew up with, that made us tear our shirts, and take our vitamins and say our prayers.
“I didn’t know to the extent all the horrible, horrible things that he had done,” Swoll said, referring to the public’s perception of the late wrestler's faux pas, which included a deliberately leaked video of him in compromising circumstances, a racial slur, and his admission to using anabolic steroids.
He had also used the term “colored” instead of “person of color”
According to Swoll’s new spiel, these infractions were “way more than just making a mistake,” and thus, he claimed, he had removed the videos.
“Also during last night’s live stream, I used the word ‘colored’ instead of saying ‘person of color,’ which is a very outdated, very offensive term.”
Image credits: joeyswoll
“A few moments later somebody educated me and told me that it wasn't okay to use that term, for which I immediately apologized to everyone and said that I would never do that again. So once again, to anybody that I offended, I am sorry.”
Hulk Hogan apologized for his faux pas, but his political affiliations made fans wonder
Swoll’s video drew a string of rebukes in the comment section, with many of his fans criticizing him.
“You never should’ve apologized for that. You bend the knee and you end up forgotten. You’re supposed to be better than that. Put the video back up and stand on business,” wrote one user.
“Wow. Seriously don’t believe you caved to those ridiculous people,” criticized another.
Image credits: joeyswoll
The bulk of the hawkishness against Hulk Hogan swirled around the revelation that he had admitted to being a racist in 2007, after using racial slurs on his daughter’s Black ex-boyfriend.
While Hulk had apologized and dubbed the rhetoric as “unacceptable,” the faux pas was revived when he was seen throwing in with Donald Trump’s support base, MAGA, and other conservative elements.
NBC News reported on an expression of the sentiment by Emmy Award-winning TV Host, Kazeem Famuyide, when he said: “You never really got the feeling that Hulk Hogan truly felt remorse.”
Factions of the Black community feel Swoll should not have apologized
Be the latter as it may, Swoll’s fans from the Black community weighed in on his apology and indicated that they were ready to forgive him.
Image credits: joeyswoll
“The black community supports you brother,” wrote one person, compounding the sentiment.
Another echoed the sentiment when he wrote that Swoll had “come too far” to concede to sensitive fans.
Swoll says he is “done” with social media
But for the weightlifting influencer, it’s all about accountability, and he said as much.
Image credits: joeyswoll
“You know my whole page, my whole brand is based on holding people accountable,” he said in the same video.
Going on a later post to his stories, the criticism far outweighs the support.
“All the good I’ve done, all the people I’ve helped, all for nothing,” he lamented, before concluding, “I’m done with social media.”
Some fans think Joey Swoll did the most damage with his apology
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