Katiera Sordjan | Starstruck

The Melting Pot | Our willingness to excuse celebrities’ violence is detrimental to women and domestic abuse victims

By Katiera Sordjan 12/03/14 10:23pm

F ootball. It comes naturally to the American mind when thinking of our culture, up there with apple pie, baseball and the stars and stripes. Our marveling at the physical prowess of athletes and adoration of celebrities seems boundless. We crowd around television sets and stadiums to watch our favorite stars, and spectatorship is nothing short of a tumultuous wave of emotions.

When Ray Rice won his appeal to have his indefinite suspension from the NFL overturned by Judge Barbara S. Jones , I was angry, but not very surprised. I have been painfully aware of the prevalence of victim-blaming in cases of sexual and domestic violence and the persistent excusal of male-perpetrated violence, particularly when these men are high-profile athletes and celebrities. There was clear video evidence of Rice punching his then-fiancee, Janay Palmer, unconscious and dragging her body out of an elevator. Judge Jones saw the change from a two-game suspension to an indefinite one as an “abuse of discretion,” yet did not seem to see Rice’s actions as an abuse of power.

Rice is certainly not the first NFL star to display such aggressive behavior and get away with it, and this is why a mere slap on the wrist is so alarming. Since the current NFL commissioner Roger Goodell assumed his position in 2006 , 57 domestic violence incidents involving NFL athletes have occurred, and only 22 of them resulted in disciplinary action, such as suspension. Fourteen athletes were able to avoid jail time by going to counseling. Michael Vick, now a quarterback for the New York Jets, spent one and a half years in prison after he pleaded guilty to charges of dogfighting and animal torture in 2007. While this crime is completely intolerable, what kind of message does it send when we see mistreatment against animals as more heinous than violence against women?

Athletes learn at a young age that their status in their community affords them special treatment. When the Steubenville High rape made headlines, news outlets such as CNN lamented the fact that Ma’lik Richmond and Trent Mays had promising football careers ahead of them before the rape, rather than speaking of the psychological impact of the assault on the female victim. There was also evidence that school faculty tried to help cover up the case. Boys can be excused for taking advantage of an unconscious girl, but girls are expected to be mature enough, despite being the same age, to take proper precautions and know that drinking could end in sexual assault.

Focusing on Janay Palmer and other victims of domestic violence is a distraction and reinforces our willingness to overlook the aggressor’s actions. One of the most disquieting sentiments that repeatedly comes up in cases such as these is “Well, why did she stay?” People who have not experienced domestic violence fail to realize the power imbalances in these relationships. While anyone can be a victim of domestic abuse, 85 percent of victims are women. The partner who is being harmed may worry about the ability to leave a partner safely, especially after being threatened. In the case of Palmer, she and her husband have a child together, and she may not wish to give up keeping her family intact over this incident. Her processing of the events by rationalizing them and choosing to forgive or excuse her husband’s behavior does not mean that he should not face a punishment that matches the severity of the assault.

Ray Rice hopes for “a second chance,” but we should not be so quick to forgive and forget. Abusive behavior is not merely a mistake to be dismissed. We learn only one thing from Rice: Make enough money, have enough fame and you become untouchable. Athleticism is not permission to abuse physical strength. Especially since so many are enduring abuse in silence, it is important that we make an example of cases that are already in the spot light.

Katiera Sordjan is a College junior from New York studying communications. Her email address is skati@sas.upenn.edu. “The Melting Pot” appears every Thursday.

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