Sarah Rose, who is non-binary and prefers they/them pronouns, is better known to pro wrestling fans as Stepstool Sarah. They have been a fixture on the independent scene for several years now as a ring announcer and photographer. Unfortunately, roughly three weeks ago, Saint Louis Anarchy was alerted by one of its wrestlers that, in his opinion, Rose had been grooming his younger brother, who is currently a senior in high school. Rose is in their early 30s.
I spoke with the SLA wrestler in question, who wishes to remain anonymous, about what transpired between Rose and his brother, who also wishes to remain anonymous. The wrestler described a series of interactions at SLA events and elsewhere that made his brother uncomfortable. Including an instance where his brother was adjusting his shorts, and Rose asked him what he was adjusting, which they brushed off as a joke. There were also instances where Rose would be mean toward his brother publicly but privately be very nice to him in what he perceived to be manipulative behavior.
Two days after his brother turned eighteen, Rose began initiating text messages with him, which, when alerted about, the wrestler found to be inappropriate. The messages from them were also persistent to the point the wrestler’s brother began to feel uncomfortable. Upset with the situation, the wrestler tells me he confronted Rose, but they were unapologetic for their actions. They blamed their autism for affecting their judgment, which is something the wrestler took offense to.
The wrestler then approached SLA owner Matt Jackson, not of The Young Bucks, with screenshots of the text conversations he took issue with. The wrestler asked Jackson to take action against Rose, who was a regular SLA photographer. Jackson was then offered a chance to speak with the wrestler’s brother directly, and the call was described to us as “pretty terrifying,” considering how young the victim sounded on the phone.
I spoke with Jackson last night, and he confirmed to me that following a review of the text exchanges and the conversation with the wrestler’s younger brother, he decided to part ways with Rose for violating the company’s code of conduct. It was also noted to me that Rose had previously worked for SLA as a ring announcer, but they parted ways for a time due to old social media messages surfacing where they used the “n-word” while talking about rap music.
I have confirmed this was the case for a few promotions that worked with Rose, as well. After they spent some time away, some chalked the old messages up to poor decision-making when they were younger and allowed them back at events. SLA only brought them back in a photography capacity, and did not use them as a ring announcer following their return.
I have been able to confirm that on top of Saint Louis Anarchy, Zero1, NAP, and Black Label Pro have all cut ties with Rose.
I reached out to Rose for comment on this story, and they replied with the following, “I’m going to seek help and wish to be left alone at this time. Please.”
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