THE Bureau of Investigation revelations of Montreal Journal concerning the physical and homophobic violence of an M18 AAA hockey coach, Arnaud Dubé, led the latter to briefly resign from his position, which he quickly reinstated.
This return to office is no stranger to the letter of support written by the members of his team, the Élites de Jonquière. The signatories publicly justify their approach by maintaining that they have not suffered any physical or psychological violence from Mr. Dubé since his sanction.
Good for you.
Societal issue
However, the issue of Mr. Dubé’s violence does not stop at the players immediately placed under his supervision, insofar as his faults are part of a much broader societal problem, trivialized for too long. Homophobia in men’s sports, hockey in particular, is extremely well documented, both in the media and in the scientific literature. Openly gay athletes are rare in hockey, football, basketball or soccer for one simple reason. They live in hostile environments, in which they fall prey to psychological harassment, sexual humiliation and, ultimately, ostracism.
How many homosexuals have never been able to evolve in a sports team because they have come up against intolerant cultures relayed by the comments of the coach? In this dossier, homosexuals form a very important category of stakeholders, with legitimate and urgent demands. These grievances must be considered in the process of sanctioning and rehabilitating the coach.
The punishment!
To that effect, Mr. Dubé’s initial punishment is clumsy at best, to the point where it might have been more appropriate to summon him directly before the Human Rights Commission. The trainer’s rehabilitation would have been more socially acceptable if he had been subjected to a stiffer sanction than a laughable three to five hour training.
From the point of view of procedural legitimacy, barely enough training to watch a documentary like cross the line (2019) sends a very counterproductive signal of the trivialization of violence. Through its laxity, the Integrity Protection Committee therefore bears joint responsibility for the slippage of this file. In response, the Minister responsible for Sport, Isabelle Charest, signaled her intention to strengthen the Committee’s mechanisms, which deserves to be encouraged.
Dear hockey players, know that we are gradually moving towards a civic sports model that breaks with the detestable culture slapshot. We no longer tolerate sexually violent initiations, nor racial slurs. The fight against homophobia is an important stone in this building. Given the challenge, solving this heinous problem will require structural and cultural changes that go far beyond cosmetic solutions and your immediate interests.
We hope that Mr. Dubé’s tribulations serve as a warning to all those who might be tempted to minimize the seriousness of homophobia in the sporting environment. The societal issue now consists of determining what constitutes a fair sanction and an appropriate rehabilitation process for those at fault.
Photo provided by Benoit Genest
Benoit Genest, PhD student, Strategy, social and environmental responsibility, School of Management Sciences, UQAM