Chicago Blackhawks: Let’s learn something from racist fan outburst

A few Chicago Blackhawks fans apparently don’t believe that “hockey is for everyone” and let black Washington Capitals player Devante Smith-Pelly know it. And it’s time to stop acting as if racism in sports, or anywhere, isn’t still a systemic problem.

The NHL decided to target February for its “Hockey Is For Everyone” promotion, which “uses the game of hockey to drive positive social change and foster more inclusive communities.”

That’s a very nice thought, especially since February is also Black History Month.

For a couple of Chicago Blackhawks fans last night, though, hockey isn’t actually for everyone. In particular, I guess black hockey players should go find a different sport, according to them.

Four fans were ejected from the Blackhawks’ 7-1 home win over the Washington Capitals last night after making racist comments toward Capitals forward Devante Smith-Pelly.

While Smith-Pelly, who is black, served a penalty for fighting with Blackhawks defensemen Connor Murphy, a few fans started chanting “basketball, basketball, basketball” in Smith-Pelly’s direction, as confirmed by a Capitals spokesperson.

Not surprisingly, Smith-Pelly took offense and confronted them from the other side of the glass. Ushers removed the fans from the game shortly after.

Furthermore, this isn’t the first time this has happened to Smith-Pelly. He detailed a previous incident to the Toronto Star in 2017 while playing in British Columba in which a fan screamed at him to “Go back to playing basketball”.

More than that, he expressed his thoughts about the situation and what it’s like to be one of the 30 or so black hockey players in the NHL.

"Said Smith-Pelly to the Star: “I can’t go to anyone on my team and have them understand really how it is to be in my shoes. Just because I’m a professional hockey player: they just don’t understand. So it’s really lonely in that sense. You don’t really have anyone.”"

Having just had a conversation with someone who told me, also a black man, that racism is no longer an important issue in this country, all I can do is shake my head. Not only does it still clearly exist, but it’s right out in the open for everyone to see if you have the eyes for it.

Now, you might think it’s not that big a deal on its face.

No curse words were said (that we know of). He wasn’t called the N-word. He and many other black hockey players have probably heard worse.

It was just a couple of fans razzing an opponent, no worse. People do that at sporting events all the time.

But that’s beside the point.

The severity of what was said doesn’t actually matter. Whether it was meant as a joke or not doesn’t matter.

What matters is that, in 2018, black hockey players are still not fully accepted in this sport for no other reason than that they’re black. And that’s a damn shame.

Also, for people who claim that “color doesn’t matter” and that anyone will accept you as long as you do your job, where are you now? Are you starting to wonder if there’s a reason other than skill that there are so few black athletes in the NHL?

How is this different than people telling Jackie Robinson in the 1940s that baseball was a white man’s game, no n*****s allowed?

The specific language used might differ, but the sentiment remains the same. A lot of incredibly ignorant people still don’t want to black people in their space.

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And a lot of people will make excuses for why those Chicago Blackhawks fans didn’t actually do anything wrong or claim that the outraged are being “too sensitive”.

My response to that: instead of defaulting to complaining about things being “too politically correct” (which, to be fair, they sometimes can seem that way), stop to think about whether what you’re saying or projecting to another person might actually be offensive. Empathy and understanding are powerful things.

And if you don’t want to do that, consider that you, and not the overly P.C. world, might be the problem.

Because stuff like that is how black Americans and minorities of all kinds, despite all our years of supposedly learning better, are still treated with contempt just for existing sometimes.

And if you don’t want to hear about “political stuff” in your sports because you want it to keep your “escape” from reality incorrupt?

First off, human decency isn’t a political topic.

Secondly, Smith-Pelly doesn’t get to escape from his reality as a black man. And I know I don’t get to escape from mine. I think you’ll survive a few uncomfortable moments of thought.

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As someone who loves Chicago sports and appreciates the passion of their fans (and also happens to be black), this has to stop. Instead of just pretending that it’s nothing more than few bad apples, let’s all take a moment to see what we can learn from this.

And if you see someone mistreating someone else in a similar way, step up and say something. Don’t stand by and be complicit.

We’re better than this, Chicago.