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Sport Penalties for Domestic Violence, Should it be allowed?

The physical abuse of a spouse, partner, or other is a common news topic. Sometimes the
abusers are popular sports figures and when they are allowed to continue on with their
professional lives as if nothing happened, this can cause anger to some people. Physical and
emotional abuse can be hurtful to many but how far should punishment go for the person
inflicting the abuse? This leads people to question whether or not the NFL and other sports
leagues should immediately penalize players accused of domestic violence.
One of the reasons sport leagues are penalizing their players is to avoid negative attention
from the public. One case is that of Ray Rice, previously a NFL player of the Baltimore Ravens.
It was made clear through this case that society was unsatisfied with the penalty originally
enforced by commissioner of the NFL, Roger Goodell. Not acting against domestic abuse could
give sports leagues a unrelenting image for not standing against it. After all sports leagues have
to keep their image clean. Originally Goodell had placed upon Rice a 2 game suspecision and
then a indefinite suspension after a video emerged of Rice hitting his wife. No sports league
wants to be labeled as going easy on domestic violence charges, and that is why after realizing
his mistake, Goodell changed his policy. This changed to being a 6 game suspension for the first
offence and a lifetime ban for a repeated offence. Yet this wasnt the only case where suspension
has been applied to a player. Other cases include those of Greg Hardy and Adrian Peterson
(Allen C.8).
Another aspect that should be looked at is what is best for the victim while still providing
fair punishment. In the case of Hope Solo, a famous womens soccer player, after being charged
for domestic abuse for punching her sister and 17 year old nephew, she was allowed to continue
playing. Yes it could be argued that punching ones wife and a family brawl are different, but

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they both fall under domestic violence none-the-less (Macur D.5). Now some argue that
penalizing the players has a greater negative effect on the victim than positive. They argue that
because many of the abused women rely emotionally and financially on the abuser, it would be
better to get the abuser rehabilitation to improve their behavior and then if it doesn't work, take
action from there (Baker 13). Well we know this isn't always true because in Solos case, she
was a woman hitting her sister and nephew. Does that mean that they fall under the emotionally
and financially dependent women category? Its not to say that rehabilitation is a bad option,
simply that it is not sports leagues job to tell someone how to solve family affairs. It may sound
discordant but if a sports league wants to penalize a player for the bad image and message they
give off, then they should be free to without having to work out the family affair.
Next, take a look at the moral principles and basic human rights involved in this situation.
There have been cases of worse abuse far more brutish and callous than a punch. Take the
case of a Miami Dolphins player who allegedly choked and beat his pregnant wife in the shower.
Most people could agree that one has no justification for ever hitting a woman, especially one
that is pregnant. The abusers are human just like everyone else, not brutes, and they should
know better. Another case was that of an Atlanta Falcons player who took his 3-week-old child
from his girlfriends arms, beat her on the head, and then threatened to kill her with a handgun
(Benedict A.21). Can you imagine the fear of these victims that the father of their child, their
boyfriend, husband, or close family member treats them in such a violent way? Also, is it fair to
them that the person who has inflicted this emotional and physical pain on them be able to
continue playing as if nothing happened? This is inconsiderate of the victims. When an Italian
news page asked young boys to slap a girl, they all refused and knew it was wrong (Sung). If a
child knows its wrong, how does a grown man not, a grown man is clearly aware of his actions,

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and if they havent understood that by now, theres something wrong. How could someone be so
nave to deny they dont know wrong from right?
Who knows how many more cases will have to occur before the world can realize that
domestic violence is inexcusable and that being penalized in a sports league is a small price to
pay for such a horrendous act. The image it gives to the team and the image it gives to the act
itself is a negative one, so sport leagues should have to penalize their players. The legal system
handles it in its own way, but for these people who are role models and watched by many,
penalization is a must. There should be a zero tolerance policy, final.

Allen, Kevin. "Voynov's Suspension Resonates: League Quickly Acts in Domestic..."

USA TODAY. 21 Oct. 2014: C.8. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 19 Feb. 2015.
Macur, Juliet. "Women's Soccer Turns a Blind Eye to Domestic Violence." New York Times. 20 Sep.
2014: D.5. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 19 Feb. 2015.
Benedict, Jeff. "The NFL's Willful Ignorance." Los Angeles Times. 14 Sep. 2014: A.21. SIRS Issues
Researcher. Web. 19 Feb. 2015.
Baker, Katherine. "NFL's Indefinite Suspension of Ray Rice Is the Wrong Approach." Chicago
Tribune. 23 Sep. 2014: 13. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 19 Feb. 2015.
Sung, Jenny. "WATCH: Boys Refuse to Slap Girl in Domestic Violence Awareness Video." Global
News. Web. 19 Feb. 2015.