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WWE's Mustafa Ali Was Told 'Empathy Will Get You Killed' When He Was a Policeman
May 31, 2020
WWE star Mustafa Ali provided a perspective on the unrest around the country following the death of George Floyd.
Ali, who was formerly a police officer, outlined his thoughts and experiences in a series of tweets last week (h/t Joshua Gagnon of Wrestling Inc.):
Mustafa Ali / Adeel Alam @AliWWEI’m a former police officer. I joined the force because I believed the only real way to bring change to policing is from within. I remember being told “empathy will get you killed.” No, lack of empathy allows you to kill. We have to change policing from within. #GeorgeFloyd
Mustafa Ali / Adeel Alam @AliWWEThe point of all this is simple; society and specifically our African American brothers and sisters have a justifiable distrust with the police. It’s the responsibility of the police to fix that issue but they won’t. Thus, it is on us,as a society to force that change from within
The 34-year-old spent four years as an officer in Homewood, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. He was still employed by the department when he began his wrestling career on the independent circuit.
He eventually broke through at the WWE's Cruiserweight Classic in 2016 and signed a WWE contract, leaving the force to become a full-time wrestler.
Despite his time away, Ali remembers the lessons learned during his time as an officer.
Other WWE stars like Randy Orton and Titus O'Neil have taken to social media to comment on the recent protests.
