Domestic Violence in the National Football League
Domestic Violence has been a reoccurring issue in many major sports leagues for example in the National Football League (NFL). The topic came to the public 's attention after star football player, OJ Simpson who played for both the San Francisco 49ers and the Buffalo Bills was put on trial in 1995 for murdering his wife and her friend and was later found not guilty (Berlins). This case brought nationwide awareness for domestic violence among professional athletes. Since the “trail of the century” more and more accusations and arrests of domestic violence of professional athletes have been made, but not all of them have been put to light. “Statistics show that in 2013, players in 21 of the league 's [NFL’s] 32 teams were …show more content…
However that is solely the number of teams based on incidents that were reported. According to judicial experts, victim advocates and sociologists who study gender violence, “Many rape and sexual assault incidents are never reported to police and many charges filed with university authorities are not revealed publicly" (Brubaker). Although domestic violence is a violent and dangerous crime many professional athletes firstly get away with their actions because they are either not reported, or obtain weak or no punishments by the sports’ leagues. Even though critics like coaches and fans argue that the NFL and other professional sport leagues should let the legal system deal with accusations and punishment of domestic violence crimes. The National Football League and other professional sports leagues should suspend players for a minimum of eight weeks for those who are accused of domestic violence because it gives a message to the public that domestic violence is not acceptable, and because the
Domestic Violence has been a reoccurring issue in many major sports leagues for example in the National Football League (NFL). The topic came to the public 's attention after star football player, OJ Simpson who played for both the San Francisco 49ers and the Buffalo Bills was put on trial in 1995 for murdering his wife and her friend and was later found not guilty (Berlins). This case brought nationwide awareness for domestic violence among professional athletes. Since the “trail of the century” more and more accusations and arrests of domestic violence of professional athletes have been made, but not all of them have been put to light. “Statistics show that in 2013, players in 21 of the league 's [NFL’s] 32 teams were …show more content…
However that is solely the number of teams based on incidents that were reported. According to judicial experts, victim advocates and sociologists who study gender violence, “Many rape and sexual assault incidents are never reported to police and many charges filed with university authorities are not revealed publicly" (Brubaker). Although domestic violence is a violent and dangerous crime many professional athletes firstly get away with their actions because they are either not reported, or obtain weak or no punishments by the sports’ leagues. Even though critics like coaches and fans argue that the NFL and other professional sport leagues should let the legal system deal with accusations and punishment of domestic violence crimes. The National Football League and other professional sports leagues should suspend players for a minimum of eight weeks for those who are accused of domestic violence because it gives a message to the public that domestic violence is not acceptable, and because the