Rozner: Rice story forces NFL, public to see domestic abuse

While the Ray Rice scandal shakes the immutable NFL to its foundation, threatening everything from its leadership to its sponsorship, perhaps there is a bright side.

Granted, it is not easy to see and maybe even a reach, but there is some evidence to suggest that coverage given to the NFL is forcing the intransigent to give serious thought to domestic violence occurring every minute of every day in homes where there is no media or interest.

Just this week, an emailer with 30 years in the law profession admitted he had no idea how prevalent the crime until encouraged to look up the numbers.

National commentators blaming the victim have come under attack like never before, and the conversation is reversing.

And Seattle coach Pete Carroll confessed that the Rice debacle caused him to stop thinking about football for a moment.

"I have to admit, my awareness is different than it was and will never be the same," Carroll said. "It's another example of an enormous situation that people learn from and grow from.

"Hopefully, the process and visibility will bring awareness throughout our society."

According to U.S. Department of Justice statistics, more than 8,000 women are physically abused every day.

On average, more than three women are killed every day in a domestic attack.

Homicide is the leading cause of death for pregnant women.

A national survey of more than 6,000 American families found that 50 percent of men who repeatedly assaulted their wives also frequently abused their children.

It takes an average of 35 hits for a victim to get out, and women attempting to leave an abusive relationship are killed at a rate that some advocates believe is as high as 50 percent.

Their greatest fear in trying to leave is that the children will also be killed, a threat commonly used to force women to stay.

And the book "Pros and Cons: The Criminals Who Play in the NFL" reported the most common crime among NFL players is domestic violence.

"Since the release of the video, and since the damage has already been done to Janay Rice, my hope is that the video is a game-changer as it relates to domestic violence," says University of Maryland law professor Leigh Goodmark. "It seems to be in the sense that the widespread condemnation from NFL players previously silent has been surprising.

"If anything good can come out of Mrs. Rice's pain it's that there's a change in culture and the understanding across all walks of life - especially in the NFL - that this is not acceptable."

Goodmark teaches at the University of Maryland, directs the Gender Violence Clinic and is the 2013 author of, "A Troubled Marriage: Domestic Violence and the Legal System."

She drives past the Ravens' stadium twice daily on her commute in Baltimore, where she had been heavily criticized for her comments about Rice and the Ravens - until the video hit the Internet.

Now, people seem to understand. On the one hand, that's a positive. But on the other, how do you get past the notion that people didn't grasp the magnitude of a woman being knocked out by a 220-pound man until they saw the video?

"That's the flip side," Goodmark said. "Today a student asked me, 'Is the effect that people will only believe a woman now when they are able to see a video?' It's a good question. It's a scary question."

It's a question the NFL has already answered.

"I think it's a real failure of empathy by the NFL," Goodmark said. "People couldn't visualize what happened even after seeing her unconscious on the ground, seeing him nudge her with his foot in such a dehumanizing fashion, and drag her out of that elevator.

"The police report said he knocked her unconscious. Apparently, that's not enough for people to believe her, but faced with a video nothing is in question."

The video resulted in Rice losing his career and his wife and daughter their financial security, but what about the NFL?

"Accountability for the NFL is defined as punishing the player, but the NFL gets off scot-free," Goodmark explains. "They create these men capable of incredible damage, train them to damage others and pay them to damage others, but they don't do anything to train them to not be violent off the field.

"What's the NFL's punishment? They don't get the services of Ray Rice? The NFL is punishing Ray Rice. They're punishing Janay Rice and her family, but how is the NFL held accountable?"

Meanwhile, this week in America 50,000 more women will get beat up by their husbands or boyfriends.

"Criminal law is not stopping people from committing domestic violence," Goodmark said. "We need societal change and a culture that holds people accountable.

"We need community support for people who are abused and programs that can teach men to change. Unless you can find a way for people to change, we're not going to solve this problem.

"But one of the most heartening things this past week was to see the response of NFL players and former NFL players. That kind of male-to-male peer interaction is incredibly helpful. It has a great impact when men call out other men on abuse.

"We need more of that. As a society, we desperately need more of that."

Maybe, just maybe, that started last week.

brozner@dailyherald.com

•Hear Barry Rozner on WSCR 670-AM and follow him @BarryRozner on Twitter.