By Ilaria Mastio
Diego Armando Maradona’s death was one of the biggest surprises in 2020. Fans from all around the world spent weeks murmuring that he was the “God of football”. As we’re approaching International Women’s day, it’s important to remember that sometimes heroes can be abusers too.
On the 25th of November, Maradona died at the age of 60, following a heart attack. He was hospitalized two weeks before his death for brain surgery. After the news, football fans shared pictures, videos, and highlights of Maradona’s career on various social media platforms, talking about him as a superhero of a different generation.
But if you have ever been interested in Maradona’s life, there’s no way you don’t know another his other side, full of drugs and violence.
Six years ago, Argentine TV showed a video of Maradona hitting his girlfriend, Rocio Oliva, who was only 24 at the time. We can see in the video Maradona shouting and slapping Oliva various times. It wasn’t the only incident between the couple, but Maradona had always denied it. They ended up breaking up more than two years ago.
As Maradona’s death lined up with the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, some people had something to say about it. Paula Dapena, midfielder of the Spanish football club, Viajes InterRías FF team, decided to sit down during the minute of silence in Diego’s tribute. Her gesture went all around social media, and not everyone was happy. She ended up receiving a death threat from Maradona’s fans, who thought she disrespected a legend like him.
On the same day, official statistics from the Government revealed that more than a quarter of a million women in England and Wales were part of domestic violence during the first lockdown. It didn’t stop people from saying how much of a hero Diego Maradona was, and how much he would be missed. Imagine being one of those women, and seeing people cheering for an abuser; it’s like living the trauma over and over again.
People seem to forget when someone famous does something terrible. From Jamie Foxx, to Johnny Depp, from Chris Brown, to Jahseh Onfroy (also known as XXXTentacion), all these men were accused of abuse and violence from their partners, and they are still working in the industry like nothing happened.
The 2003 dropped rape allegation against Lakers star Kobe Bryant, who died in a helicopter crash in January last year, did little to harm his career. Thanks to the #MeToo movement, however, he was dropped from the jury of a film festival just months after he received an Academy Award nomination for best animated short film. Still, some people who mentioned the allegation after his death were also branded disrespectful, much like Dapena.
As a supporter, it can be hard to accept that a person you’ve been looking up to your whole life has done something wrong. However, domestic violence is such a significant thing, and we need to speak up no matter who the person involved is.
- If you or someone you know is affected by domestic violence, you can get help.
- Call the freephone, 24-hour National Domestic Abuse Helpline 0808 2000 247 or look online for a local centre near you.
Leave a Reply