In response to a recent sexual assault case involving under-15 players, Hockey Nova Scotia and the Avalon Sexual Assault Centre are rolling out a pilot programme to teach young hockey players about consent, harassment, and team culture change.
Hockey Nova Scotia and the Avalon Sexual Assault Centre in Halifax are introducing a pilot programme aimed at teaching young hockey players about consent and hazing, in a move shaped by a recent case in Colchester County that drew provincial attention to behaviour inside youth sport. The initiative will reach more than 2,000 under-15 players of all genders, according to Hockey Nova Scotia executive director Michael Field.
The programme arrives after two under-15 players in Colchester County were charged with sexual assault following a team sleepover last autumn. One of the accused changed his plea to guilty last month, while the other pleaded not guilty in May, according to the report in The Canadian Press. The case has prompted renewed scrutiny of the ways team rituals can slide into abuse, particularly when younger athletes may feel pressure to conform.
Kailee Wakeman, director of operations at Avalon, said the centre received numerous messages from worried parents and coaches after the incident and later held a webinar in February to help adults talk to children about consent and hazing. She said the new player-focused programme builds on that work and is designed to help children identify discrimination, harassment, pressure, hazing and coercion. Wakeman also said the aim is to shift team cultures away from the belief that hazing helps bind a group together, arguing that research shows otherwise.
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