Kong Describes Discriminatory Encounter with Dixie Carter While Planning a Future Memoir

Kong recounted an incident involving Dixie Carter, saying she had been preparing to include the story in a forthcoming book. The episode featured Carter passing her partner in a hotel lobby to shake the hand of an elderly Black porter.

She shared this account on the No Contest Wrestling podcast, hosted by O’Shea Jackson Jr. and TJ Jefferson, while addressing what she perceives as the ignorance faced by Black women in wrestling. This is her personal account; Carter has not responded, and the story has not been independently verified.

“I have never told this story before. I don’t recall that interview. I have always said that if I were to write a book, I would reserve the story for it.”

The incident occurred the night before Bound for Glory in Los Angeles, marking the first time her then‑boyfriend—now her husband—had been present on the roster.

“We were all in the hotel lobby, where the wrestlers were relaxing, and Dixie was present. I introduced Dan, and after everyone had shaken his hand, Dixie approached.”

Kong said Carter was standing close enough to touch when the introduction occurred.

“I said, ‘Dixie, this is my boyfriend Dan,’ and she replied, ‘Hey.’ She then moved toward a camera and shook the hand of an elderly Black porter wearing a traditional porter’s uniform, complete with a hat.”

“And I said, ‘Wait. Everyone was like, what? He’s far over there, and I’m like, this is my boyfriend.'”

In her own explanation, Carter had been searching for the only Black man in the room and had mistakenly chosen the wrong person.

“She said, ‘I have to find the only Black person here. Oh, there he is.'”

“That must have been embarrassing, because we all just witnessed it.”

Kong said the reaction she received when she repeated the story at the next television taping lingered with her. She chose not to identify the colleague involved.

“I said, ‘Yes, she shook a Black porter’s hand,’ and he responded, ‘Shame on her. Of course you could get a white man. You could get a white man.'”

Kong said she did not understand what was being said to her.

“What does that even mean? Can I get a white man? Like, what? Am I good enough to get one? I was confused, something in the water. Call catering.”

This is not the first time Kong has spoken publicly about Carter. On the season seven premiere of *Dark Side of the Ring* in July, which chronicled TNA’s history and Jeff Jarrett, she said she had been denied a pay raise while earning less than a McDonald’s manager, and that other Knockouts champions were working second jobs while the company signed veteran wrestlers to lucrative contracts. Carter did not respond.

Kong worked for TNA from 2007 to 2010, returned for brief spells in 2015 and 2016, and has made occasional appearances since.

Carter served as the company’s president during Kong’s initial tenure and held an executive role until 2017.

The story arose during a longer answer about the name she was given when she began. In 2002, while in Japan, she learned she had been announced as Amazing Kong via a magazine.

“I didn’t know, so I assumed they saw a big Black girl and decided to call her Kong. I asked, ‘What? That is rude.'”

Samoa Joe and others explained the context, including the existence of Aja Kong, a Japanese wrestler she was unfamiliar with. She then chose to adopt the name deliberately.

“I considered Josephine Baker and the challenges she faced, as well as Black icons such as Nat King Cole and Sammy Davis Jr., and asked myself, who am I to endure the hardships of the entertainment industry and serve as a bridge for the next person?”

Her original plan was to explain the reasoning later.

“When I become famous, I’ll change my name and discuss why I had to become Kong. That was the purpose of Kharma—talking about becoming Kong, being assigned that identity, and finally having a voice.”

“If I’m going to take this name, I’ll have to overcome it, and then when people ask about it, I want to discuss it.”

Kong worked in WWE as Kharma in 2011 and 2012, and portrayed Tammé Dawson in Netflix’s *GLOW* across three seasons.

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