This is the commercial that got me thinking about the awfulness known as domestic violence. It made me start thinking. No, I'm not going to criticize the commercial or the people who appear in it. It's actually quite a good commercial. The problem is: the message isn't going to get through... at least to the finality that it states.
Why?
Because, though it doesn't say much directly, domestic violence is a problem that men subject women to...even though it isn't.
You see, this year is the year of domestic violence with Ray McDonald, Greg Hardy, Ray Rice, and Johnathon Dwyer (all NFL players) getting accused of domestic violence. All mentioned are suspended indefinitely by the NFL. They have been vilified by the media and by social media. Alright, I get it. But there's a problem:
Rice is the only one that has plead guilty.
But that's not why I'm not 100% behind this campaign and will not openly support it. Though the commercial is right on, the reality is that it isn't handled that way at all. It is handled specific to gender trending in statistics. In other words: it only matters when it is a man beating a woman. Yes, I know that a VAST majority of domestic violence is in this vein. However, not all of it is.
Case in point? Hope Solo. As we speak, Hope Solo has been accused of domestic violence. There was one article on ESPN.com about it. That's it. No outcry. No suspension. No condemnation of any entity. Heck, I'm not even sure that there's even been any condemnation of Hope Solo personally, despite the allegedness of the claims. Why is that? Is it because she's just a soccer player?
Well, she's not the beer league soccer player... she does have the honor of representing this country in soccer in world tournaments like the World Cup... but perhaps since the World Cup isn't going on right now, she's not relevant?
Or maybe it is gender stereotyping again. "Aw, comon, man! Put your big boy pants on. Can't take it from a girl? Shoot, she was probably just into rough foreplay!"
I cannot take vilifying men charged with domestic violence charges as long as women aren't treated equally whenever they are charged with the same crime.
It's a lot like sexual misconduct. Look at all those sickening sex scandals between a male teacher and a female student. Sickening, for sure, but they are found guilty and sentenced to around 20 years in prison. Now flip the genders and what happens?
It's all based upon statistical likelihood of occurrence. Men most often are the defendents in domestic violence and sexual misconduct cases, therefore, they're the culprits. It's sad. It's like saying "Black people were behind the riots in Ferguson. Therefore all black people are the cause of public disturbances and rioting." I don't have the stats in front of me, but I'm fairly certain that this "claim" is false.
So, rewatch the commercial. If domestic violence is bad, and we need to make a big public ordeal behind each occurance among our celebrities and pro athletes, then we need to make sure that ALL occurrences get such treatment, not just the "usual" suspects.
If/When Dwyer, Hardy, Rice, MacDonald see their court day (or plea session) and a judgment is reached, if it is guilty, I hope they rot. However, if they are innocent (no matter how unlikely it may seem), then play on fellas and good luck on the field.
