The Neepawa Natives hazing scandal rolls on.

The 15-year-old player who first reported the hazing has been traded from the team, a move welcomed by the player’s parents.

Brad Biggers, the assistant coach of the team, has resigned in light of allegations that he was in the room at the time of the hazing, and has been indefinitely suspended from coaching.

Neepawa’s local radio station, CJ97 Radio, has pulled their support from the team, saying they will only replace it if the player who reported the hazing is apologized to, and if head coach Bryant Perrier is fired.

For those not in the know, the scandal began when the player in question reported the team’s hazing rituals, which he was subjected to in September. These rituals included dragging around a case of water bottles tied to his genitals.

As this story illustrates, hazing can be a cruel fixture of joining a sports team, as well as a confusing one.

Like many observers, I can’t see how forcing a teammate to perform degrading acts does anything to promote togetherness. And I played hockey for many years growing up.

But it must be said that not everyone goes as far as the Neepawa team, especially when the hazing takes place out of the realm of sports.

When I started Grade 9, a few of my friends and I were laid down on the sidewalk and treated to a shower of ketchup and mustard from the Grade 12s, an uninspired excuse for hazing that had been learned from Dazed and Confused.

It was silly, and though our principal took it very seriously, it was certainly not malicious. In all honesty, I think it did bring us closer to the older guys. I realize this isn’t the norm, but it must be said that not all hazing is disgusting and vicious.

In light of the Neepawa story becoming national news, talk of hazing being considered an offence under the Criminal Code of Canada has begun.

This is a tricky issue, because as my anecdote illustrates, the spectrum of hazing may be wide, and not every form is as hurtful as the one performed by the Neepawa Natives hockey team.

If there’s one thing I know, it’s that laws should not be created based on the emotional response of parents; if this were allowed, anyone who made a harsh comment on Facebook would be in jail.

However, it’s true that many team rituals are bizarre and degrading. From close friends who played high school hockey, I have heard several stories similar to that of the Neepawa Natives.

Extremes such as forcing a new player to masturbate in front of the rest of the team are not unheard of.

Putting aside the psychoanalytic tendencies this behaviour inspires in me, such stories do not depict a team growing closer together, and they are usually not told by players still on said team.

I welcome the criminal consideration for hazing, especially in the wake of this awful story.

But the guidelines for what constitute malicious hazing need to be precise, so that an abstract title is not utilized to accuse harmless people of a crime.

Trevor Graumann is The Uniter’s comments editor.

Published in Volume 66, Number 10 of The Uniter (November 2, 2011)