Mennonites 'more puzzled' than put off by OHL on-ice chirp: Expert
With a London Knight suspended five games for calling an opponent a 'Mennonite,' we asked a Mennonite scholar for his take on the story.
Landon Sim of the Knights was tossed out of the game and assessed a game misconduct early in London’s 5-1 win at Sault Ste. Marie on Nov. 6. The Ontario Hockey League suspended Sim indefinitely as it began an investigation, and this week made it a five-game suspension. The OHL found Sim “intended to provoke an opposing player that was marginalizing on both religious and cultural grounds,” violating its code of conduct. Sim’s agent, Andrew Maloney, said Sim had been insulted by an opponent, in the regular back-and-forth on ice, and “he used the word ‘Mennonite.'” He said he believes Sim said it “without much knowledge behind it,” but “it’s wrong and inappropriate” and “a teachable moment and something he’s not going to repeat now that he’s totally aware of it.” The Soo Greyhounds said Wednesday they have nothing to add, saying “this is a league matter that has been dealt with and neither the Soo Greyhounds nor its members will be making any comment on the situation.”
A MENNONITE EXPERT’S VIEW
“It’s classic – Mennonites get in the news for something odd and suddenly, everyone pays attention,” said Troy Osborne, a Mennonite historian and the dean of Conrad Grebel University College, a school affiliated with both the University of Waterloo and the Mennonite Church. “You wonder what the heck is going on because we’re pretty well known in (Southwestern Ontario) and you see (Mennonites) in the farmers’ market in St. Jacobs and places like that. We’ve been talking about that (OHL penalty) story and I don’t want to speak for the player involved, but it seems like Mennonites are more puzzled than offended by it.”
With a London Knight suspended five games for calling an opponent a 'Mennonite,' we asked a Mennonite scholar for his take on the story.
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