Short Assignment Three
Domestic violence is supposed to be bad, and sports are supposed to be good. So why does the NFL’s policy creation and enforcement cloud these seemingly black-and-white notions? No league representative would ever publicly claim that domestic violence should be pushed aside in order to keep a player or sport intact, but time and again that’s what spectators are witnessing.
For the purposes of our multimodal essay, we’re considering the impact of how the enforcement (or lack thereof) of the NFL’s domestic violence policies speak louder than any of the rhetoric the league may present to the public.
The NFL’s policy regarding domestic violence is too lenient and allows for:
- sports to come out on top over other, more damaging issues.
- questionable or absent punishments for players.
- victim/witness suppression.
- patterns of abusive behavior to continue.
- player worship to continue amid negative personal narratives.
Arguments for harsher, more concise punishment:
- Temporarily suspending players is not impactfull enough.
- While the punishments outlined by Gooddell sound good, the league often fails to act even when presented with evidence. (i.e. Ray McDonald)
- NFL’s lack of execution on policies; the league put a policy out but has failed to follow through with consequences.
- “Statistically speaking, however, Gooddell’s standard for sanctions has been the exception rather than the rule: Two known decisions have resulted in six-game suspensions, at least four decisions remain unannounced or unclear, and at least two NFL inquiries are ongoing” (Pilon).
Arguments against:
- One mistake could potentially ruin a player’s career/public image for life.
- Would cracking down on domestic violence inherently mean cracking down on minority players?
- It is not the NFL’s place to take action on a player’s personal life.
- Brings unwanted attention to the player, team, and sport = hindering sales = bad for owners.
- The sport would change as a whole if there was more socially-conscious action taken.
NFL Domestic Violence Policy Key Facts:
- Up to a six-game suspension without pay upon the first violation and lifetime after the second.
- Players do not have to be charged by police or the court to receive NFL sentencing.
- Roger Goodell has the power to pass judgement over infraction cases.
- What is the chain of command? Roger Goodell, NFL Players Association, player-in-question’s personal representation, disciplinary committee, and NFL as a whole? Who accepts/reviews/delivers judgement on the case?
- “Since the six-game suspension language was added to the personal conduct policy, there have been nine NFL suspensions potentially related to domestic violence. In all but two of those cases, the league has upheld suspensions that have been fewer than six games, according to ESPN Stats & Information” (McManus).
Possible sources / considerations:
-NFL Conduct / Domestic Violence policy
-DePaul Conduct / Domestic Violence policy
-#MeToo movement
Opinion piece that domestic violence is not the root of the problem: http://ppdlife.com/sports-do-not-have-a-domestic-violence-problem/
NFL-issued opinions/policy:
https://operations.nfl.com/football-ops/fines-appeals/
http://mag.bleacherreport.com/nfl-domestic-violence-policy-suspensions/
https://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/nfl-controversy
Possible Works Cited
Pilon, Mary. “‘Hush-Hush’: Inside the NFL’s Domestic Violence Punishment Problem.” B/R Mag, 31 Jan. 2017, mag.bleacherreport.com/nfl-domestic-violence-policy-suspensions/.
McManus, Jane. “The NFL Is Finding out Just How Complicated Domestic Violence Punishments Can Be.” ESPN, ESPN Internet Ventures, 28 Aug. 2016, www.espn.com/espnw/voices/article/17398140/the-nfl-finding-just-how-complicated-domestic-violence-punishments-be.
