The video images of
Ray Rice hitting his wife in the elevator are stark. Boom! Violence.
Personal and private. Yet captured on the security camera. The images spread on
the internet. The reactions were as swift.
Ray Rice is/was a profession National Football League star.
On the Baltimore Ravens NFL team. A running back. Swift, incisive player,
talented. Strong, too. His fiancé then, now his wife, was not big and powerful.
Slight and feminine. Knocked out cold. In plain view of the camera.
Today Ray Rice is out of a job. Maybe forever out of the
NFL. As tragic as this event was and is, it is good that the Ravens and the NFL
agree that domestic violence among their personnel must be attended to. The new
NFL rules on domestic violence carry a
two game suspension for the first offense; a repeat offense is permanent
suspension. Period.
Domestic violence is evil. In our nation and in our culture.
Thankfully the NFL has made a strong stand with regard to its highly visible,
highly paid and revered athletes. They are not gods. Some of them are evil,
just like others scattered throughout humanity whether American or some other
nationality. We must all take a stand against this evil.
I found this quote on the internet the other day. It is anonymous, but the message is timeless:
“We
need to teach our daughters to know the difference between:
-A man who flatters
her and a man who complements her
-A man who spends
money on her and a man who invests in her
-A man who views her
as property and a man who views her properly
-A man who lusts after
her and a man who loves her
-A man who believes
he’s a gift to women, and a man who believes she’s a gift
to him
And then we need to
teach our sons to be that kind of man.”
Evil is often a result, a symptom of an amalgamation of
other factors. We teach or don’t, lead or don’t, stand up for principle or
don’t. Sloppy living creates opportunity for unwanted results, symptoms, or
evil. Think about it. The problem is ours to solve.
And we can do it by paying attention, asking for help when
we need it, but above all, by not ignoring problems as they begin to emerge.
It is not OK to hit another person. It is even more not OK
for a man to hit a woman, a child or any other human being weaker than he. We
can instill this principle in our kids at home, in school, in social
gatherings. We need to present a good role model for them to witness and be
guided by when we are not in their presence. At all times.
Of course, we have events happening in our culture that send
messages that can affect the outcomes we hope for. Doing violence to others
takes many forms. Policies and practices of a school, an employer, a business
entity, whatever, send messages and form expectations.
Hillary Clinton stated the following on the recent court
case that allowed employers to escape some requirements to insure women’s
reproductive healthcare on religious grounds:
“Many more companies will claim
religious beliefs. Some will be sincere, others maybe not. We’re going to see
this one insurable service cut out for many women…this is a really bad, slipper
slope.”
Is this court decision violence against women? Is this a
stretch of our logic? I don’t think so. Women must be free to determine their
own future, their own medical treatment, their own advice and counsel on
matters important to them. A health insurance plan should help the patient get
what she needs in coping with medical and personal choices that have outcomes
to her and her family’s life. This is not a court matter other than ensuring
women have those rights! And it is not proper for an employer to decide what is
moral and what is not in the personal life of an employee when such decisions
have no impact on job performance.
It’s time to call out the Supreme Court. And employers who
hide behind murky religious creeds. And politicians who cater to narrow
interest groups and leverage public policy for personal gain. Shame on them
all.
Evil lurks we are told. Evil exists among us. It is for all
of us to see it and live accordingly.
Whether violence is a hit to the head, a slap to the face,
or reduction of personal liberty, it is unwanted and dangerous to the fabric of
our society.
May we remember this in all of our affairs. Meanwhile, thank
you to the NFL for standing tall on domestic violence. And shame to the Supreme
Court for narrowing personal freedom of women in the name of religious freedom
of an employer.
Read your history books, Justices of the Supreme Court! Freedom of religion works on many levels in
our society. You've tortured it yet into a more horrible monster.
September 10, 2014
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