CFL’s new violence against women policy puts support for victims first

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 06/08/2015 (3743 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Janay Rice was knocked out by Ray Rice’s fist in the winter of 2014 and the immediate widespread response was how the perpetrator’s football career would be affected.

Twitter, mainstream media, the NFL and its fans barely paused to step over the unconscious figure of Janay Rice to begin the conversation on how games and the career of a Super Bowl champion running back would be altered.

The victim existed only as the smoking gun and, as is so often the case in domestic violence, had little impact on the matter. This was about Ray Rice. His soon-to-be wife and victim was secondary. And not a close second.

The CFL, often an afterthought on the landscape of North American pro sport, is now the leader and a shining example of how leagues should deal with their employees and privileged stars in matters of domestic violence. They’re putting the victim first and even better, they’re trying to prevent violence against women in their workplace.

Violence against women is a societal issue and shouldn’t be treated in the context of how many games a player will miss. How does suspending a player help the victim? How does a suspension prevent the next victim from being hit?

Certainly, when a professional athlete strikes a woman, there should be consequences. But the first reaction should be to ensure the victim’s safety and well-being.

The CFL announced its first policy on violence against woman Thursday with the stated aim to “prevent violence in the first place, respond quickly on behalf of those harmed when it does occur, provide help to those affected by it and seek behaviour change from anyone found to be perpetrating violence.”

All of pro sports is late getting to this issue but the CFL got it right. Sure, as time moves forward we’ll find flaws. But for a first step, this is groundbreaking and better than anything we’ve seen in sport.

The NHL has no stated policy, and most programs are reactive while the CFL’s is decidedly proactive.

CFL senior management drafted the policy in conjunction with frontline workers and it shows.

“Whether there is ‘proof’ of an allegation or not, no report will be ignored. Every situation will be assessed, with experts called in when necessary, and help will always be offered,” states the release.

Women and their statements will be taken seriously. Very often, the burden of proof is placed on the victim, and victims are often met with skepticism.

The policy’s pro-active approach and focus on the victims, which makes it strong and forward-thinking, could also be viewed as a weakness. Sanctions are necessary and must be an absolute in clear-cut cases of domestic violence. The policy has brains and a heart. It must prove to have teeth as well.

The CFL began looking at drafting a policy shortly after the Ray Rice incident in 2014 under then commissioner Mark Cohon and continued the work under new commissioner Jeffrey Orridge. The league didn’t huddle its GMs or competition committee but contacted women’s groups instead, including Ending Violence Association of Canada, and asked for their input and guidance.

“The leadership being shown today by the entire CFL is to be applauded profoundly,” said Tracy Porteous, the chair of Ending Violence Association of Canada. “Violence against women has long thrived in the shadows so when organizations, especially those led by men, step forward to ask, ‘What can we do to break the silence?’ it shines an important light on a subject most people don’t know what to do with. Through this policy the CFL is changing history.”

The CFL’s admitting its own ignorance on the issue led to success. They knew they were ill-prepared to write policy. They spent time and money. This isn’t lip service and an attempt to curry favour. This is a push for change and an opportunity for a professional sports league to use its podium for the betterment of society.

“In talking with women’s groups, we were struck by the fact that they put the emphasis on protection and support for a woman at risk, and supporting behaviour change on the part of perpetrators, while others can tend to measure a policy purely by how tough or punitive it is,” Orridge said. “For example, the women we worked with on the policy spoke to us more about whether a woman’s life could be at risk, than whether her spouse was going to be punished. In fact, some said that removing an employee’s ability to make a living could affect his ability to provide child support, which would negatively affect his former partner and their kids.”

The devil, however, is in the details. A policy is just words. How it is enforced and executed is key. That’s how it will be judged.

So this is a great first step. The CFL has our attention. Now make it work. Make us believers.

gary.lawless@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @garylawless

You can see the full report here.