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#1 A long road regarding Black history in WWE
As Black History Month comes to a close, both Mark Henry and Booker T reflected on their journeys as well as the journeys of other black athletes in pro wrestling. Henry started off by remembering the past, saying that he couldn't "just talk about my journey. I have to talk about guys like Ernie Ladd." Henry recalled that Ladd told him that "they're doing things with you that they haven't done before with an African American talent. Don't mess it up."
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Booker T recalled another Legend talking to him, saying that he remembered "Ox Baker told me 'you got a lot of talent but you're going to have a lot of obstacles. You have to figure out how to go over, under around, through those obstacles." Booker added that wrestlers need to know "how to be Champions inside the ring and outside of the ring."
Henry also went back to praise his time in the Nation of Domination, claiming that he "was fortunate enough to be in the Nation to have guys like Ron Simmons and The Godfather who were veterans" by his side. He added that "because of their teaching, we (he, The Rock and D'Lo Brown) were able to rise up and become our own individuals."
Booker T added that the world title wasn't necessarily one of his goals, saying that "winning the World Championship wasn't ever a thought in my mind." His brother, Stevie Ray, felt differently as Booker claimed that Ray told him that he "was better than everyone in the locker room."
The former strongman added that he's tried to help the next generation of black athletes in WWE. He's tried his best "to be a source of advice for NXT and the Performance Center" because "that did not exist for us." Both men went on to praise current NXT star Bianca Belair as "the cream of that crop" at the PC.
Booker and Henry "made young people like Bianca Belair say 'if Mark Henry and Booker T can do it, it's possible for us.' That's exposure." Henry also added that "if you're willing to put the work in, I'm willing to vouch for you."
