I was going to write about how many modern men aren’t evolving, still reading comic books, playing with action figures and so on, but this seems a little secondary after last Thursday’s verdict of former Q host Jian Ghomeshi.
I’ve covered plenty of trials and can stay dispassionate in a courtroom. I didn’t follow the case closely, but I wasn’t overly surprised by the not guilty verdict, considering how the Crown’s case had unravelled.
Still, it’s hard not to throw up one’s hands in cases where victims are on trial, especially when the accused is powerful.
High-level athletes are not immune, as several have been accused of sex-related crimes. Cases involving Patrick Kane, Ben Roethlisberger and Kobe Bryant stand out, but they are hardly alone. And that’s what’s most troubling, especially when we hold athletes up as role models – and, sure, lots deserve to be.
Years ago, the Benedict/Crosset study found among NCAA universities in the U.S., male student-athletes made up only 3.3 per cent of the population but were involved in about 20 per cent of sexual assaults and 35 per cent of the domestic violence cases. More recent research suggests the problem is only getting worse, as athletes still represent a disproportionate number of cases – and are also more likely than non-athletes to have their cases dismissed.
I should point out it doesn’t refer to most athletes, and it’s not something I’ve had to cover directly, except for one case at my first newspaper job in another town. I think what we’re talking about is a segment of men, not limited to athletes, who feel entitled to sex with any woman.
Full disclosure: I was the youngest of six and the only boy. My sisters were extremely diverse people and I didn’t grow up making stupid generalizations about women because I couldn’t even generalize about the ones in my family.
I certainly didn’t grow up assuming sex with any woman I fancied was some kind of entitlement for me as a man.
Not even close.
It’s all too convenient to pretend the only assailants to be feared are strangers lurking in bushes, but that’s just not the case.
I’m not trying to be Mr. Sensitive Guy – often, they’re the shiftiest blokes of all – but I think we heterosexual males of the species are long overdue for a good look in the mirror or at least a quick peek in the dictionary to remember what the words “no” and “yes” mean.
