Janel Grant has stepped back into the public eye for the first time since her federal lawsuit against Vince McMahon and WWE was dismissed — and she did it while being honored for her advocacy work.
Grant took the stage on September 11 after receiving the 2026 Advocacy in Action Award from the Connecticut Alliance to End Sexual Violence, using part of her speech to talk about power, change and what happens when the right people come together. The appearance came less than two months after Grant, McMahon and WWE jointly moved to dismiss the federal lawsuit with prejudice, while preserving their ability to continue pursuing claims and defenses through private arbitration.
Grant was announced ahead of the event as one of the Alliance’s 2026 Advocacy in Action Award winners. In its announcement, the organization praised her work pushing for changes to nondisclosure agreement laws and described her advocacy as focused on survivors, power dynamics and coercive control. The Connecticut Alliance to End Sexual Violence said Grant had become an important voice in the push to limit the use of NDAs in situations involving survivors.
“Janel is a survivor of workplace sexual assault and trafficking who was silenced by a nondisclosure agreement she was forced to enter into with a CT corporation. Since then, she has been instrumental in advocating for the passage of legislation to limit the use of NDAs when they silence survivors, using advocacy to frame NDA reform as a matter of supporting and protecting human rights.”
The organization also praised Grant personally and said her work now includes developing a framework addressing the intersection of power, coercive control and mental health.
“Janel is an incredibly kind, empathetic, and brave woman who believes in the power of being the light you want to see and in people showing up for one another. She is committed to developing a new framework that establishes standards for effectively addressing the complex intersections of power dynamics, coercive control, and mental health.”
Then came Grant’s turn to speak. In footage obtained by Ringside News from the September 11 event, Grant opened by saying she was grateful to be there before immediately zeroing in on one subject — power.
“I’m so grateful to be here. There’s a theme right now in the world. A unifier around power. Powers that be, powers at play. Gaining it, winning it. Inner power, use of power, cell phone power.”
Grant continued by talking about the way power can make the world feel frozen, right up until something finally shifts. She then began talking about what she called the power of synchronicity.
“Power might instill in our minds that nothing in the world ever changes, ever really changes. Everything is stuck until the day something looks and sounds different.”
“The power synchronicity, as I once told Beth, is when the right people.”
Grant originally filed her lawsuit against Vince McMahon and WWE in January 2024, accusing McMahon of sexual assault and trafficking while alleging WWE enabled or concealed his conduct. McMahon denied wrongdoing, and WWE disputed the allegations.
The federal courtroom portion of that fight ended in July 2026 when all sides agreed to dismiss the case with prejudice and move the dispute into private arbitration. That means the legal battle can continue, but much of what happens next may stay out of public court records.
Grant’s September 11 appearance now marks her first surfaced public speech since that shift happened. And she didn’t use the moment to directly attack McMahon or WWE. Instead, she stood in front of a room honoring her advocacy work and talked about power — the same issue sitting at the center of the legal and personal fight that has followed her for more than two years.
Grant may no longer be fighting that battle in an open federal courtroom, but her first public appearance since the dismissal made one thing pretty clear: she’s not disappearing.
What do you make of Janel Grant choosing an advocacy award event to make her first public remarks since the lawsuit was dismissed? Let us know what you think in the comments.
This transcript was produced exclusively for Ringside News from the original recording. Republishing the transcription in full is prohibited. When using excerpts, provide prominent credit and a link to this article.
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