The NFL is mandating that all players as well as league and team personnel undergo educational seminars about domestic violence and sexual assault during the next 30 days. In a memo sent to teams and staff, the NFL also announced that it has partnered with the National Domestic Violence Hotline and National Sexual Violence Resource Center.
NFL mandates domestic and sexual abuse awareness training for all players, personnel
The NFL has had a bevy of legal problems in recent weeks, and the league is finally trying to stop the avalanche.
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“We will dedicate significant resources to raise awareness on the subjects of domestic violence and sexual assault,” NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said, per Sports Illustrated. “These are by no means final steps. We will continue to work with experts to expand and develop long-term programs that raise awareness, educate, and prevent domestic violence and sexual assault both within the NFL and in our society in general.”
These moves, along with the hiring of four women to help guide the league's domestic violence policies, are part of the NFL's response to widespread criticism for its handling of abuse cases involving some of its most high-profile players, including running backs Ray Rice and Adrian Peterson, along with defensive ends Ray McDonald and Greg Hardy.
Peterson and Hardy both find themselves on the exempt list, meaning they will be paid but cannot practice or play with their teams. Rice was originally given a two-game suspension before ultimately being handed an indefinite suspension from the league and his release from the Baltimore Ravens, following a tape showing him punching then-fiancee Janay Palmer, now his wife. McDonald is still playing for the 49ers, who have elected to let the legal system play out.
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