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| Why? (http://yfrog.com/hs3vmyfij) |
Without a doubt, a very small percentage of Vancouver fans were involved in the destruction and it's probable that some anarchists who have no interest in hockey joined in the "fun." Canucks captain Henrik Sedin was quick to condemn the violence, saying "It's terrible. This city and province has a lot to be proud of, the team we have and the guys we have in here. It's too bad."
Why do riots happen after sporting events, sometimes even when the rioters' team won? Psychologists have theories. An article in today's Toronto Globe and Mail cited a psychologist who said the anonymity of crowds combined with alcohol make some people comfortable doing things they wouldn't normally, but that doesn't explain everything because: "They serve alcohol at church socials and in the theater, but you don't see these kinds of behaviors [there],”psychologist Christian End of Xavier University said.
Even if we knew exactly why sports riots happen, it would seem pretty tough to stop them completely. Police are limited by the whole "brutality" thing and depending on the size of the crowd, very few riot participants are arrested. That is the root problem - rioters usually get away with behaving badly. So we can either change laws to allow law enforcement to treat people like pinatas (seems unlikely), or we can do more to publicly and frequently condemn sports riots. There is no perfect solution, but change starts with people knowing riots won't be tolerated. Beyond that, as many rioters as possible should be locked up for at least 24 hours.
Sports aren't supposed to be about violence (except for maybe football, but don't let the NFL hear anyone say that), and it's tragic when something that should be a pleasant distraction from the everyday blahs turns so dark.
UPDATE: Vancouver police arrested around 100 people and nearly 150 people were hospitalized thanks to the riot.
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