An update on Keegan Mitchell, who was suspended for defending teammate against racism
A story had surfaced last week of young Keegan Mitchell, after he was suspended for 2 games by Hockey PEI for slashing a player who used a racial slur directed at one of his teammates. Mitchell was then suspended indefinitely after he took to social media to criticize his suspension.
Today it was announced that Hockey PEI would be repealing Mitchell's suspension effective immediately. They also commend Mitchell for speaking up for what is right and calling out the outdated policies that the league had in place.
Meanwhile the player who used the slur had his suspension increased from 2 games to 5 games after Hockey PEI acknowledged their initial error in the length of the suspension.
In their statement, Hockey PEI said:
"Hockey PEI recognizes the impact that racism can have in hockey, and on individuals, families, teams and the community as a whole. We take ownership of the fact that this situation should have been handled better, and will use this as a learning experience while continuing to make the game accessible, inclusive and safe for any individual that participates. To start, we will begin by conducting a thorough review of the current guidelines. Our board is committed to examining our rules and enforcement strategies and implementing strict and long-term updates to help prevent any similar situations from occurring in the future. We can and will do better."
This all comes after enormous public backlash relating to Mitchell being suspended indefinitely for speaking out on social media. Hopefully this incident can change hockey for the better and Hockey PEI's future actions can improve based on what they have said in their statement.
