Prosper inspiring change
When Logan Prosper shared his story with Cape Breton media last week, he had hoped it would be a learning experience for everyone, not just the hockey community.
The young Whycocomagh hockey player spoke about a recent incident during a Cape Breton Midget A Hockey League game between the Cape Breton West Islanders and Northside Vikings in Cheticamp, where he alleges he was the target of racial slurs from opposing players and fans.
The 16-year-old forward, who plays for the Islanders, said the racial slurs began during the second period of the game from players and continued in the third period from fans.
Hockey Nova Scotia is investigating the incident and met with the Prosper family last Thursday. Details of the investigation were not released at press time.
Following the incident, Logan's father, Phillip Prosper, made a social media post on Facebook describing the incident, a post which has collected more than 900 likes and 1,000 shares.
From there, the #TeamLogan movement was created. The movement encourages hockey players to use red stick tape to show their support for Logan and to end racism in the sport and society.
It didn't take long for the movement to catch attention. Minor hockey associations across the province and country quickly jumped on board as well as individual teams, all putting the brightly coloured tape on their sticks.
The movement has grown so large it would be hard to mention all of the associations and teams who are taking part in the initiative — it's a good thing because it means awareness and education is being provided beyond Cape Breton.
Along with the red stick tape movement, Prosper has also received hundreds of messages from from Canadians showing their support for him and encouraging him to keep playing hockey.
Prosper's story has also reached former NHL players. He received a phone call from Cody McCormick, an Indigenous player from London, Ont., and a message from Akim Aliu, who recently spoke out about former
Calgary Flames head coach, Bill Peters, who hurled racial epithets toward him.
Surely, Prosper wasn't expecting to hear from former NHL players when he shared his story, but to know he has the support of both players and so many across the country can be appreciated.
On Saturday, Prosper was mentioned on Hockey Night in Canada's game between the Edmonton Oilers and Toronto Maple Leafs.
Sportsnet's player bio during the game featured Oilers defenceman Ethan Bear, who was raised in the Ochapowace Nation in Saskatchewan. His message to Prosper was: "Be true to who you are and don't let others try to change you."
Prosper's courage to share his story is inspiring. It's never easy sharing personal stories, but in this case, he has inspired change which expands farther than just the hockey community.
Other incidents in Nova Scotia rinks have also been shared in the media recent. In fact, on the same day as the Prosper incident — Dec. 8 — Pictou County Crushers defenceman Christian Tsao was the target of racial slurs in the Maritime Junior Hockey League.
In the case of Tsao, a stayat-home blue-liner of Asian descent, on-ice officials heard the slurs and issued a gross misconduct to the offending player. Yarmouth Mariners' Daniel Surette was suspended six games by the league the next day for the incident.
It's disturbing to hear of these incidents in our society.
Hockey is for everyone and rinks are suppose to be a safe environment. Hopefully incidents like these don't happen again because nobody deserves to be treated in that way and the sooner it's realized the better society will be.
Prosper and his Cape Breton West teammates returned to the ice on Saturday for the first time since the Dec. 8 incident in Cheticamp. The Islanders visited the Cape Breton County Islanders at the County Arena in Coxheath.
During the game, Cape Breton West and Cape Breton County players used red tape on their sticks, demonstrating unity for one another.
As for the red tape movement, it's not too late for associations and teams to show their support. Red tape can be purchased at most sports stores.