It was only a matter of time, that the maelstrom of reaction from all sides today, crossed with some very stern words from GLAAD, caused a lengthy response from the National Hockey League. NHL discipline czar Emeritus, Colin Campbell, issued a statement this evening regarding an incident during Monday night’s preseason contest between Rangers forward Sean Avery (Caucasian-Canadian) and Flyers forward Wayne Simmonds (African-Canadian). Allegedly, anti-gay and racial slurs were exchanged in heated discussions between both players. Campbell’s statement said the league has looked into the allegations but has not been able to substantiate what was said and by whom. …
A conflicted response to the banana-throwing incident
As far as I can tell, we have two facts in the case against Mr. Bananathrower: 1. A banana or a banana peel was thrown on the ice while Wayne Simmonds was on the shootout. 2. Wayne Simmonds is black. It’s hard to ignore the apparent connection between these two facts and come to the conclusion that this was an act of racism. Unfortunately, the person who threw the banana was not identified and escaped without any repercussions. As a result, we cannot accurately determine this person’s intent. But it seems obvious. What reason would anyone throw a banana on …