Screenshot of Ray Rice's back on jumbotron at M&T Bank stadium
Screenshot from @jamisonhensley on X (Twitter)

On the last day of 2023, the Baltimore Ravens honored former running back Ray Rice as a “Legend of the Game,” an accolade bestowed on a player chosen for their accomplishments on and off the field. When he emerged on the field pre-game, the crowd gave him a standing ovation and there was sustained, loud cheering. But online the choice to honor him drew sharply divided reaction, ranging from praise and gratitude to outrage and sadness.

Rice was a star player at Rutgers and was a three-time Pro Bowler with the Ravens in addition to playing on their 2012 Super Bowl-winning team. He spent six seasons with the Ravens, but his storied NFL career ended abruptly in 2014 after video emerged of him punching his then-fiancée (now-wife) Janay Palmer and dragging her out of an elevator.

The NFL initially suspended Rice for two games, before the league was shamed into ultimately suspending Rice indefinitely. That decision was overturned, but by then his professional football career was effectively over.

The team’s front office clearly anticipated mixed reaction to honoring Rice, as the announcement mentioned not only his tremendous football career, but the steps he’s taken since the elevator assault (which Ravens President Sashi Brown called an “incident”) to break the cycle of violence.

“He was also consistently in the community, giving back. Importantly, after Ray’s incident he owned it,” Brown said. “On his own accord, Ray undertook critical work within himself and to bring awareness to and educate others on domestic violence. Nothing will change his past or make it right, but Ray’s work has allowed him to atone for his actions and rebuild relationships personally and professionally, including with the Ravens.”

Rice himself makes no excuses for his actions that were caught on video in 2014 and has worked to explore what led him to that point, and share what he learns with others in the community. According to the team website, he’s shared his story with more than a dozen NFL and college teams, speaks to the team’s rookies at their annual educational seminar, and worked with groups like the Childhood Domestic Violence Association and A Call to Men.

“I truly understand why I was let go and why so many hearts changed. But hopefully people can see where I’m at now,” Rice told the team’s website. “They say people can change, right? I am not the same person I was 10-12 years ago. That’s just not who I am. Every time I stepped on the field, I gave it my all. But I couldn’t say the same for life. Now I’m trying to be the best version of me.”

The most high-profile defender of Rice was Jemele Hill, contributing writer for The Atlantic. In a post on X (formerly Twitter), she wrote, “I’ve done A LOT of reporting on Ray Rice over the years and it’s very few situations in which I’d say this: He’s truly done the work. He’s a good person who had a horrific moment, but has done so much to educate young boys and men about domestic violence. His advocacy work isn’t for show. He is proof of the power of growth and healing.”

Hill also asserted the elevator assault was a “one-time incident,” pointing out that Rice had no history of domestic violence before it, nor since.

Reactions on the platform varied.

Many were negative, disappointed, angry, and/or appalled at the decision to honor Rice.

Others agreed with Hill that if Rice had done the work he deserved to be honored and given the chance to help others avoid the same road he’d gone down.

Few folks held relatively neutral stances.

Numerous sportscasters and pundits nationwide weighed in via opinion pieces, and reactions varied widely.

Mike Freeman of USA Today called the decision “utterly disastrous and staggeringly tone-deaf.” Freeman didn’t deny people can change, or even that Rice has changed. But he expressed disgust that the team honored Rice, characterizing the manner in which they did so as “whitewashing” the domestic violence as well as lacking transparency.

“This is a totally self-inflicted organizational wound and you can tell the Ravens aren’t even fully into doing it…. The Ravens’ decision would be more palatable if in their announcement, the team said it had gotten feedback from domestic violence groups about their plans. Or team officials were made available to the national media to answer questions,” Freeman wrote.

Matt Vautour of MassLive.com said the announcement should be greeted with “stunned outrage.” He said Rice’s name is “synonymous with domestic violence.” Acknowledging that while he’s certainly not the only NFL player who has committed intimate partner violence, he “became the face of it” when the video emerged in 2014.

Like Freeman, Vautour didn’t deny Rice’s ability to change or improve, though he didn’t seem to have done enough research when he wrote, “If the Ravens want to use their platform to put him in front of a microphone telling other football players and other men how to get treatment or help to curb and prevent future incidents of domestic violence, that’d be great.” Indeed, that is exactly what Rice and the Ravens have been doing for the last 10 years.

Vautour maintained his position regardless. “But even if he’s fully repented and has never done it again, it doesn’t erase what he did. It’s certainly not enough to elevate him to hero status. It sends an awful message to the current players about what is tolerated after a little time has passed,” he wrote.

In The Baltimore Sun, the vast majority of reader commentary opposed the decision to honor Rice. Like Freeman and Vautour, most readers felt Rice may have changed, but did not deserve to be spotlighted and honored, let alone cheered by 70,000 fans.

Baltimore Fishbowl spoke to representatives from House of Ruth Maryland and Turnaround, Inc., both organizations that counsel and provide support services to people impacted by sexual and intimate partner and domestic violence, about the Ravens decision to honor Rice.

The Ravens have donated more than $2 million to Baltimore’s House of Ruth since 2014. Andrew Primrose, Chief Communications and Development Officer for House of Ruth Maryland, sent Fishbowl the statement they released when the Ravens announced they were planning to honor Rice.

House of Ruth Maryland is extremely proud of our partnership with the Baltimore Ravens over the last nine years. The Baltimore Ravens have made a true organizational commitment to understand and address intimate partner violence as both a workplace and as a leader in our community. We are grateful for all that they have done and continue to do to make home a safe place for every Marylander. As an organization, we recognize that every person is capable of change through hard and continuous work and a direct willingness to address the attitudes and behaviors that enabled their actions.

In a phone call, Primrose wouldn’t address the Ray Rice situation specifically, citing the difficulty of remarking on an individual’s journey about which he didn’t have personal knowledge or the authority on which to comment. He did, however, expand on the work done by House of Ruth.

“We have a dual mission as an agency. And that mission is to address the attitudes, behaviors and the systems that cause abuse, while working to protect and provide safety and stability and security to those that experienced abuse,” Primrose said.

In addition to providing support for people who have experienced domestic violence, House of Ruth works with people who have perpetrated acts of abuse through their Gateway Project.

“We have people that complete the program that have not committed an act of violence since then, absolutely. Do you see that where people change the attitudes and behaviors? Absolutely. You look at that from the perspective of being an ongoing process just like you would a substance abuse issue, where that’s continuing an ongoing life changing process,” Primrose said.

Primrose continued, “These are behavior and patterns that are groomed over our lifetime. And so, we talk about the attitudes, behaviors, and the systems that reinforce that. You’re talking about childhood experiences and things that are witnessed, general public and perception and how that is witnessed and observed. And then reactions within the relationship that reinforce that behavior as well. And so, all of those things kind of come together to create this pattern of coercion and control.”

“We believe the statement that people are capable of change, but it takes hard work and a willingness to address those attitudes, behaviors,” he added.

The Gateway Project is a 28-week program enrolling about 450 people each year who have commited violence. According to Johns Hopkins University, studies have shown that people who complete the program are 40% less likely to commit violence again.

The statement from TurnAround, Inc. did not mention Rice specifically, but focused on the impact the moment might have on those who are experiencing or who have experienced domestic violence.

Seeing accolades for individuals involved in high-profile cases of abuse can be very difficult for survivors, and TurnAround is available to help. Anyone experiencing intimate partner violence or struggling in the aftermath can call our 24/7 helpline at 443-279-0379 for assistance with shelter, advocacy, legal referrals, trauma therapy (including individual and group counseling), and locating other resources. For those who are not in a safe place to call, they can text us at 410-498-5956.

If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence or intimate partner violence, here are some numbers you can call.

National Domestic Violence Hotline: 800-799-7233 or text “START” to 88788
House of Ruth Maryland: 410-889-7884
TurnAround, Inc: 443-279-0379
Chana: 410-234-0030