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Former Divas Champion AJ Lee has boldly called out WWE Chief Brand Officer Stephanie McMahon for the poor treatment of the WWE’s female wrestlers.
AJ retweeted Stephanie’s endorsement of Patricia Arquette‘s Oscars acceptance speech, in which the actress called for equal pay for women:
RT @StephMcMahon: Thank You @PattyArquette for having the courage to fight for #WomensRights on such a grand platform. #UseYourVoice
— A.J. (@WWEAJLee) February 25, 2015
She used the tweet to accuse Stephanie of hypocrisy, tweeting that despite being top merchandise sellers, Divas are paid less than their male counterparts and receive a fraction of the screen time:
@StephMcMahon Your female wrestlers have record selling merchandise & have starred in the highest rated segment of the show several times,
— A.J. (@WWEAJLee) February 25, 2015
@StephMcMahon And yet they receive a fraction of the wages & screen time of the majority of the male roster. #UseYourVoice
— A.J. (@WWEAJLee) February 25, 2015
This comes on the heels of the #GiveDivasAChance trending topic, which trended worldwide on Twitter during last night’s Raw.
AJ has been gone from the WWE since December, nursing a neck injury. She has been rumored to make a return in the lead up to WrestleMania 31.
UPDATE: Both Vince McMahon and Stephanie have acknowledged the criticisms.
Vince encouraged fans to keep watching, telling them that the WWE is listening:
We hear you. Keep watching. #GiveDivasAChance
— Vince McMahon (@VinceMcMahon) February 25, 2015
Stephanie spoke to AJ directly, thanking her for her “opinion”:
Thank you @WWEAJLee, I appreciate your opinion. #UseYourVoice
— Stephanie McMahon (@StephMcMahon) February 25, 2015
