THE Bureau of Investigation revelations from MontrealJournal over the physical and homophobic violence of an M18-AAA hockey coach, Arnaud Dubé, prompted the latter to resign briefly from his position, which he quickly reinstated.
This return to office is no stranger to the letter of support from members of his team, the Élites de Jonquière. The signatories publicly justify their actions by saying that they have not suffered any physical or psychological violence from Mr. Dubé since his sanction.
Nice for you.
Social problem
However, the issue of Mr Dubé’s violence does not stop at the players who were immediately placed under his watch, as his mistakes are part of a much broader societal problem that has been trivialized for too long. Homophobia in men’s sports, especially ice hockey, is very well documented in both the media and academic literature. Openly gay athletes are rare in hockey, soccer, basketball, or soccer for one simple reason. They live in hostile environments where they are victims of bullying, sexual degradation and ultimately exclusion.
How many homosexuals have never been able to thrive on a sports team because they encountered intolerant cultures conveyed through the coach’s comments? In this dossier, homosexuals constitute a very important category of stakeholders with legitimate and urgent demands. These complaints must be taken into account when sanctioning and rehabilitating the trainer.
The punishment!
For this reason, Mr Dubé’s initial punishment is clumsy at best, to the point where summoning him squarely before the Human Rights Commission would have been more appropriate. The coach’s rehabilitation would have been more socially acceptable if he had been sanctioned more harshly than a ridiculous three to five hour workout.
From a procedural legitimacy standpoint, barely enough training to watch a documentary like Crossing the Line (2019) sends a very counterproductive signal of downplaying violence. Due to its negligence, the integrity protection committee therefore bears some responsibility for the slippage of this file. In response, Minister for Sport Isabelle Charest signaled her intention to strengthen the Committee’s mechanisms, which should be encouraged.
Dear hockey players, you know that we are slowly moving towards a bourgeois sports model that breaks with the despicable slap-shot culture. We no longer tolerate sexually violent initiations or racial slurs. The fight against homophobia is an important building block in this building. Faced with the challenge, solving this hideous problem will require structural and cultural changes that go far beyond cosmetic solutions and your immediate interests.
We hope that Mr Dubé’s problems will serve as a warning to anyone who may be tempted to downplay the seriousness of homophobia in the sporting environment. The societal question now is to determine what constitutes a just sanction and an appropriate rehabilitation process for the guilty.
Photo provided by Benoit Genest
Benoit Genest, PhD student, Strategy, Social and Environmental Responsibility, School of Management Sciences, UQAM