Shame on the NFL. Why did it take the release of a graphic video depicting violence and abuse to make the NFL punish one of their own? The initial information the public received about Raven's star Ray Rice should have pushed the NFL to a zero-tolerance policy on domestic abuse.
The NFL has gotten themselves in deep trouble with what seems to be the entire country. On Monday, TMZ released a video showing Rice beating his then-fiancée Janay Palmer in an elevator. After he knocked her out, he proceeded to drag her unconscious body outside by her feet. In March, a photo was released of Rice dragging Palmer out of the elevator, causing the NFL to give Rice an inadequate suspension of merely two games for the following season. However, the case made headlines again when this video was released. The public uproar forced the NFL to revisit the situation and impose a more severe punishment. Rice has been suspended indefinitely and cut from the Ravens.
If
Rice wasn't a well-known, professional athlete, his initial punishment would
have undoubtedly been more severe. They took Rice's "celebrity
status" and let that skew their judgement of right and wrong. Goodell told CBS News news on Tuesday, “We assumed there was a
video, we asked for a video, but we were never granted that opportunity”. I suspect the NFL knew
more about the case than they led on a few months ago. The NFL claims
they had never seen the video, but if they really hadn't, why didn't they
investigate the case further? Doesn't the NFL have the power to demand more surveillance video at the time of the incident?
I think that the NFL needs to seriously reconsider their position on domestic violence. In my opinion, they handled this situation poorly. They knew what he did was wrong, but chose to ignore a more severe punishment in order to keep a star player. Domestic violence is wrong. Just because Rice is a professional athlete doesn't mean he should be exempt from punishment for this crime. What's the message the NFL is sending?
Sarah-
ReplyDeleteI completely agree that the NFL could have done much more than they actually did. I have always noticed that athletes and other famous people seem to get a less severe punishment than they deserve. I feel that no matter how famous a person is they should not be able to get away with doing something like this.
Sarah this post is very interesting especially with so much bad press on the NFL right now. It seems as though they are trying to protect their players and putting the safety of their player's reputations before punishing them for domestic abuse. I agree with Ariana, no one should ever get away with doing something this terrible, no matter what their social standing is.
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