With all of the domestic violence being displayed throughout professional sports lately, it’s hard to understand in who or what are we supposed to believe anymore. First, you have Ray Rice who was kicked out of the league when an exclusive video of him knocking out his then fiancé Janay Palmer inside of an elevator made headlines. Then, you have Johnathon Dwyer, who was arrested for head butting his wife, breaking her nose and throwing a shoe at his seventeen-month-old child.

The star running back of the Minnesota Vikings, Adrian Peterson, was also involved in a domestic violence case. He was indicted (suspended indefinitely) after leaving marks on his child from giving him physical punishment. Many people don’t believe that Peterson is capable of that (even though he literally is physically capable of it) due to the type of professionalism and standards Peterson holds himself to. Some believe that he should be allowed to play while others think that he should remain indicted and off the Vikings roster.

Russell Wilson, Super Bowl champion and quarterback for the Seattle Seahawks, recently came out and admitted that he grew up being a bully and wasn’t always the nice guy that everyone know him as now. In an article on espn.com, Wilson stated, “Recent incidents of domestic violence have forced the league, its fans and the players to take a hard look into our collective conscience. To be honest, many NFL players are reluctant to address such a sensitive issue. How do you fix a problem so big and complex? How do you speak about something so damaging and painful to families? What can we do to help?” (Wilson stated via Terry Blount.)

The answer is quite simple; Don’t do it. The fact is that it’s wrong. I just don’t get it. No woman or child should have to go through any type of beating from a man, whether you’re an athlete or not. Instead, people who view athletes, particularly football players, as being ignorant have another reason to say we aren’t “right in the head.” These athletes need to realize that they aren’t just going to the league to become super stars. They become role models, people that young children look up too and dream of being one day.

Wilson also stated in a column from Derek Jeter’s new website, ThePlayersTribune.com:

“As NFL players, we do not play a gentle game,” Wilson wrote. “But our hits, our anger, our aggressive behaviors need to be regulated and confined to the field.”

Peterson got what he deserved. He needs to realize, along with the people who believe he did nothing wrong, that he is in the wrong. Until someone can provide evidence that shows that Peterson did nothing wrong, he is guilty. He deserves the suspension that he received from the NFL. Everyone is guilty until proven innocent.

This is a huge issue that we as people need to take a stand and put an end to. Instead, it’s dramatically starting to increase. It seems like every day we hear a new story about a professional athlete being the headline of another domestic violence case. I’m not saying that parents shouldn’t be able to discipline their kids. Instead they need to learn and establish the limitations of said punishment. You cannot put your hands on a woman. Athletes know that they’re stronger than that child or that woman. There’s a difference between discipline and beating.

Being a football player, or an athlete for that matter does not mean you get special privileges. The message that the NFL needs to get across to people is that they are NOT going to tolerate domestic violence of any sort. Letting people know this, acting upon it and abiding by it will help the NFL drop the stereotypes that these athletes face every day. Roger Goodell, commissioner for the NFL, needs to take the information he is provided with and put it to action. Saying he needs to resign instead of addressing the true issue is pure ignorance.

Being an athlete should be an even bigger reason for these guys to stand up against it and spread the word of how wrong it is. They should not do the opposite and thus be labeled as abusers, woman-beaters, etc. As previously stated, they are the people that our youth look up too and dream of being.

Be the guys that they want to be like.

Stop the violence.