An Open Letter to the NFL on Domestic Violence
By Nafisa H
An open letter to the NFL on the issue of domestic violence
Mr. Goodell and the NFL,
Just stop what you’re doing for one minute. By the time that minute’s up, an average of 24 people would have become victims of rape, physical violence or stalking by an intimate partner in the United States, according to The National Domestic Violence Hotline.
That’s 24 too many for me. Yet, that must not be enough for you. Because case after case, you, the NFL, choose to stay silent on domestic violence and allows players to get away with only a slap on the wrist as their consequence.
One knocks his wife unconscious and drags her across the floor. That’s worthy of a two-game suspension, according to you! Another abuses his ex-girlfriend at least four times. That’s worthy of a 10-game suspension, right? Oh no wait—you thought that was worthy of a “lengthy” four-game suspension.
Well, what do you think is an appropriate punishment for someone who has over 20 domestic violence incidents against his wife, an unborn child, and another child on file in police reports? Apparently, a one-game suspension is enough punishment, because you took his word over the word of his ex-wife and police records. Yet, when he admits that he was physically, emotionally and verbally abusive in his own words, then you reconsider your initial stance and punishment?
Tell me, were the initial documents and police calls not enough for you to see the monster that Josh Brown is? Does a player threatening to knock a woman out not enough? Do you need to see more graphic images to believe that these incidents happened? Are you waiting to see an image of someone in a morgue?
Do you have to know what it’s like before you take these domestic violence incidents seriously? Because if that’s the case, let me help you out and give you an idea.
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Imagine being so hurt emotionally, mentally, and physically that you go to sleep praying for everything to end because you can’t go on. Imagine walking around on egg shells because you’re brainwashed to think you’re the issue and anything you do can set your abuser off. Imagine being reduced to nothing and staying in a tumultuous relationship because you’re told you’re not a good enough partner and no one else will want you or love you. Imagine not leaving this living nightmare for years because your partner is threatening to withhold money, take your kids away, or commit suicide if you leave them.
If you experienced this, do you think your approach to these domestic violence incidents would change? Do you think you’d suspend someone for an entire season and urge a team to drop them? Would you lend your support to the victims?
To be honest, I don’t think you would. Your poor handling of these incidents speaks volumes. Why does Josh Brown still have a job when so many victims loose theirs as a direct result of the abuse?
I will say that I know all of the blame doesn’t belong to you. First and foremost, the real blame is on the abuser. Domestic violence should never occur. But it also shouldn’t be tolerated.
Washington police should’ve kept Brown locked up and done a better job at removing Molly and the children from the situation. The New York Giants should’ve released Brown immediately once they received news and documentation of the abuse, especially when they advocate so much for ending domestic violence.
Why you have to reopen the investigation into this case is beyond me. You had all the evidence from the beginning with all of the public records. Why make Molly and the children relive this traumatic experience because you failed to investigate properly? Aside from the trauma, do you know the guilt, shame, and embarrassment victims feel from domestic violence? These feelings linger long after the violence stops, if it ever does.
Domestic violence is a very real issue. It’s not one to be taken lightly and if 24 victims per minute isn’t a enough for you, then does 12 million per year get your attention? Every October, you pretend to care about women and raise awareness for breast cancer. How about this October, domestic violence awareness month, you simply do something that should’ve been done a long time ago and ban Josh Brown? Domestic violence affects twice as many women as breast cancer, you know.
Best wishes for change.