The public’s disdain certainly extends to the case of Baltimore Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis. And it was in evidence throughout the pre-Super Bowl hype, as the media challenged Lewis to explain and to apologize. I’m not so cynical as to believe that all that outrage manifested by journalists represented nothing more than a need to fill broadcast minutes or column inches. And they couldn’t have imagined an unhappier outcome than Lewis winning the MVP trophy in the Super Bowl.
Lewis’s saga, from courtroon to Super Bowl champ, is certainly a harsher taste of reality than anything that will be dished out on “Survivor” or anything else passing itself off as reality TV. Admittedly, it is hard to fathom how a league that penalizes people for taking off their helmet or dancing excessively when they score a touchdown, one that actually suspends people for certain illegal tackles, could let Lewis get off with just a fine after pleading guilty to obstruction of justice in the two killings in Atlanta last year. (Oh yeah, there was one other belated NFL-related punishment: Lewis isn’t, as other Super Bowl MVPs have been able to say, “going to Disney World.” That annoucement might have sent women, children and even Mickey Mouse fleeing for the gates a couple hours away in Orlando.)
Still, it is time to let Lewis off the hook. He is not a very appealing man, as he still opines on how there’s very little difference between the “thugs” he hung out with on the street and the “thugs” he meets on the field. He will never be the role model we seek but so seldom find in athletes today. But all the outrage over the Atlanta killings and his swift return to the NFL ignores some salient facts. Lewis would never have agreed to abort his defense and plead guilty to the misdemeanor charge had he not been promised privately that he could immediately resume his NFL career. (There was extraordinary pressure on Lewis from his extended family as well as a host of hangers-on who didn’t want to risk their cash cow on a jury verdict.)
THIS STAIN OF CRIMINALITY
And had Lewis not pled guilty, agreeing to testify against his co-defendants, he would certainly have been acquitted just like they were. And then he would not bear this stain of criminality that he will carry with him for the rest of his life. I am not naive enough to think it weighs on him, as it might on some others like some modern-day Scarlet Letter. But I do suspect it is an emotional burden and will remain one, if only because Lewis must realize he could have fought the charges to the end and beaten the rap as his pals did. That is a certain kind of punishment.
Lewis deserves his MVP and full credit for this athletic achievement. So too does Alan Iverson, another less-than-stellar character off the court who seems well on his way to an MVP season in the NBA. The fault is not in our stars, but in us, those of us who have allowed the sports world to become the ultimate measure of acclaim in our society. Guys like Lewis know nothing of accountability because they’ve never been held accountable-above the rules and, in their minds, above the law from the moment they demonstrate that they can hit harder, run faster, shoot better than other kids. That shows no signs of changing. So there’s little reason then to expect our star athletes to.
