After a week of a more lighthearted story last week, we turn to a story with a more serious impact.
Richard Sherman, formally with the San Fransisco 49er, now a free agent was best known previously for his postgame “speech” after his win with the Seattle Seahawks in the 2014 playoffs:
Unfortunately, the narrative on Sherman has flipped as he was recently involved in a domestic violence dispute with his wife last week. There was a viral video on Twitter that showed Sherman attempting to enter forcefully into his father-in-laws’ house to get to his wife. (WARNING EXPLICIT LANGUAGE):
Sherman was taken into custody and charged with five different charges related to domestic violence. As standard practice in Washington state for domestic violence cases, Sherman was also denied bail.
Later in the week, Sherman issued a public apology on his social media that stated the following:
This story is still unfolding but it does lead to a larger issue for the NFL. Depending on the metric that you look at, women make up about 45% of the fans for the NFL. This includes viewership, ticket sales, and even jersey sales. Almost half of the profit that the league makes is made up from the population that historically they have a dismal record with.
Keep in mind, that Richard Shermans’ event is not isolated within the NFL. This is concurrent with Houston Texans quarterback, Deshaun Watson with over 20 accusations of sexual misconduct allegations looming. While investigations are ongoing, the outcome looks grim for the quarterback. There is currently no plan or communication of such plan publicity to suspend Watson for any amount of time.
One of the ways that I personally like to view sports in the broader context is as a microcosm to what is going on in society today. The pending cases of two of the league’s biggest stars are certainly a stain on the already tarnished reputation of the league. I think it is far time to admit, that we as a society have an issue with dealing with our most vulnerable populations. In this case, the vulnerable population is women. This is not to suggest that women are any less than men in value, dignity, or worth. This is only to allude that when given a historical context, women have not traditionally been put in the position that grants them authority or power. By this definition, I would deem women a vulnerable or marginalized population.
As men, we must take up the obligation to use the power and privilege we have to protect those who don’t have. The stories that have come out recently about the NFL are horrifying and sickening to hear about. As an avid sports fan, this is a dark spot in the world of sports. A culture of accountability needs to be set amongst those who can do something about these issues. I’m sure, that the teammates facing allegations will not endorse the actions that were done. However, it must be stated that more can still be done to ensure that there is zero-tolerance for this behavior in sports.
Looking at Jesus as an example, we see how He deals with the woman at the well in John 4. This woman was vulnerable as she was poor and mistreated by her community. Jesus still treated this woman with dignity in the way that He spoke to her. He also showed her grace in the way He was gentle in correcting her. By the end of the conversation between the woman and Jesus, she was so excited that she couldn’t contain the good news that she met Jesus.
Dignity and respect change the output completely. Not only in sports and in this world but for the believer, for eternity. My hope is to see a massive change in sports where men step up to the task given at hand, and instead of brutalizing other vulnerable women, stepping up and holding brothers accountable to protect.