Does Hope Solo have female privilege?

By AUTUMN ROBERTSON

The tables have turned and people are outraged. But do they have a right to be?

Hope Solo, 33-year-old goal keeper for the USA women’s soccer team, was charged with two counts of misdemeanor domestic violence against her sister and 17-year-old cousin.

Within the past month, an uncanny amount of domestic violence charges have been released among male athletes and have caused much controversial discussion. People asked why the athletes were suspended (with pay) because of a “private matter” that we, the public, has no right to know or get involved in.

Now this female soccer player has a domestic violence charge over her head, the media seems to have backed away from the story, and she is still playing for the team with no suspension.

People, especially men, are upset. But should they be?

Many are saying that it is unfair that Solo faces the same charges as NFL players Ray Rice and Adrian Peterson but is still being allowed to play for her team. People think that Solo is receiving special privileges simply because she is a woman, and since she is a huge role model for many girls around the world, the media and the National Women’s Soccer League do not want to taint her image.

But are the media not blowing up this story simply because it is not as “scandalous” as a man knocking out his wife or beating his son? Maybe the media does not want to cover a story of a woman who had a family brawl.

Family brawls, unless you are Beyoncé, Jay-Z, and Solange in an elevator, are not very newsworthy and are not as controversial as the domestic violence situations that Rice and Peterson found themselves in. And the National Women’s Soccer League seems to think the same thing.

Should the NWSL punish Solo for her actions just as the NFL has punished athletes for theirs?