It was almost 64 years to the day that Willie O’Ree of Fredericton, New Brunswick took to the ice with the Boston Bruins as the first Black player in the NHL, his entry into the league came years after teams refused to even consider signing Herb Carnegie, a Torontonian of Jamaican descent who was one of the most talented and spectacular hockey players in the 1940s and 50s.
Both tell cringe-worthy stories of the excruciating racism suffered at the hands of fans, team mates and opposing players at levels in hockey.
Today, the NHL has about 30 Black players and there’re a couple dozens more in its affiliate leagues, the AHL and ECHL and while there might have been some changes in attitude at all levels when it comes to diversity, the scourge of racism remains prevalent.
So, in the midst of the celebration of the anniversary of O’Ree’s ground-breaking achievements, and as the Boston Bruins retire his jersey, another Black Canadian Jordan Subban was dealing with the racist taunts of an opposing player.
Just as it was in the 1950s, 60s and 70s, Subban a defenseman playing with the South Carolina Stingrays an affiliate of the Washington Capitals was the object of ridicule of an opposing defender Jacob Panetta of the Jacksonville Icemen affiliate of the New York Rangers, who resorted to monkey-like antics after the two had a brief altercation on the ice at a game on January 20.
That incident comes a week or so after a similar one in the American Hockey League another NHL affiliate, when Krystof Hrabik of the San Jose Barracuda indulged in the same act towards Montreal born Boko Imama who plays with the Tucson Roadrunners.
To their credit, both leagues and teams moved quickly against both offenders with significant sanctions.
The ECHL tossed Panetta from the league pending an investigation and his team the Icemen followed through by also releasing him, while the AHL slapped the Czechoslovakia born Hrabik with a 30-game suspension.
What a shame it is for the 86 year old O’Ree to be witnessing this travesty of humanity close to six and a half decades after he hurdled over all types of obstacles to make his landmark appearance for the Bruins on January 18, 1958.
O’Ree who was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2018 talked about the scars of the racial abuses heaped on him as the first Black player in the league, including a harrowing night at the Chicago Black Hawks when he was quoted as saying that he was “lucky to get out of the arena alive.”.
In 1961 after playing 43 games for the Bruins over two seasons, he was traded to the Montreal Canadiens, a team he accused of being run by racist for not giving him a try out.
Today, O’Ree stands as one of professional hockey’s most decorated ambassadors: a member of Canada’s Sport Hall of Fame; a member of the Order of Canada and a soon to be recipient of the highest civilian award in the United States, the Congressional Gold Medal.
Having served as the NHL’s director of youth development and an ambassador for NHL Diversity over the past 24 years, he continues to be a passionate advocate for more diversity in the league.
However, continuing incidents of racial abuse towards Blacks and other players from minority groups tell of a league still in the throes of intolerance and hate.
Three years ago, Devante Smith-Pelly then of the Washington Capitals bruised by repeated incidents of racial abuse was quoted saying to the Associated Press that not much had changed over the past 60 years.
“[O’Ree] had to go through a lot, and the same thing has been happening now, which obviously means there’s still a long way to go. If you had pulled a quote from him back then and us now, they’re saying the same thing, so obviously there’s still a long way to go in hockey and in the world if we’re being serious.”
Recently a group of players including Akim Aliu, Evander Kane, Trevor Daley, Anthony Duclair, Matt Dumba, Nazem Kadri, Wayne Simmonds, Chris Stewart and Joel Ward banded together to form the Hockey Diversity Alliance in an effort “ to eradicate systemic racism and intolerance in hockey” and “to inspire a new and diverse generation of hockey players and fans.”
Racism endures in hockey because it’s systemic
