Editor’s Note: Kai Savaree-Ruess is a long-time San Francisco 49ers fan and a season-ticket holder for the 49ers. While SportTechie is a major proponent of a safe fan experience, the views in this article represent Savaree-Ruess’.
As the San Francisco 49ers prepare for a Monday Night Football game in St. Louis tonight, it’s as good of time as any to discuss the odd year they are having so far.
Despite having gone to three straight NFC Championship games, many reports already have Jim Harbaugh out as coach after this season, barring a Super Bowl victory.
Maybe even still.
Levi’s Stadium opened to mixed reviews. Most fans, primarily those that live south of San Francisco, love the new stadium, but glitches and logistical difficulties have brought criticism and left many feeling underwhelmed.
Oh, and there’s Ray McDonald, who was arrested for domestic assault. To make matters worse for the 49ers public relations team, the arrest came just days after the NFL Commissioner announced the league’s plan to toughen and standardize the suspension for such acts due to its mishandling of the Ray Rice incident .
Last weekend, a fan was critically injured in a bathroom at Levi’s Stadium during the Kansas City Chiefs game. Initial reports are that two men initiated a fight – and I use the term “fight” liberally because this is probably better described as an attack – because one of the men didn’t like how the victim nudged him to alert him that a stall was open for use.
Seriously.
There is a YouTube video of the attack, which I don’t recommend you watch. I watched it, and by the end, my stomach was in knots. It made me uneasy; both because of what I was seeing – specifically a kid on the ground convulsing after suffering life-altering brain damage – but also because it was so simple. There was no lead up to the attack. This was just a moment in time where someone’s life could have ended for seemingly no reason. It made me uneasy because this victim could have easy been me.
The attackers seem like bad guys, given reports of their prior run-ins with the law. Perhaps this could have or would have happened anywhere. Maybe these guys woke up looking for a fight and just happened to have 49ers tickets that day.
Maybe.
Unlike the other issues that the 49ers front office has been dealing with this year, the media hasn’t asked the 49ers just what they plan to do about this. By that, I don’t mean what the team plans to do for this particular victim, but rather what it’s going to do to make sure no one else gets jumped at a urinal.
Every day there are questions posed to the 49ers and reports published on Harbaugh’s contract situation. There are weekly anecdotal diagnoses of how Levi’s Stadium and the parking lots are holding up and accommodating fans. As new information about the McDonald investigation comes out, how the 49ers dealt with and continue to deal with the situation is always part of the discussion.
But for some reason, the tone of the bathroom attack coverage seems focused solely on the attackers and the victim. No one is asking how the 49ers are going to fix this, which is ironic because this may be the only one of the things discussed here that the front office can fix.
If Harbaugh wants out, he wants out. Analysis over.
The Stadium is built. Like it or don’t like it.
Should the 49ers and professional sports teams generally take steps to try to stop domestic violence? Well, yes, but ultimately domestic violence is a societal problem, not an athlete problem. Certainly there is value in demonstrating that if you commit a crime, particularly a violent crime, there will be severe consequences. But, ultimately, the 49ers can’t control what their players do outside of team facilities.
But the 49ers actually can control what goes on inside its facilities. The team has an obligation – moral, if not legal – to ensure that its patrons are in a safe environment. That is why I cannot understand the chorus of demands that land on Jed York’s desk for clarity on the Harbaugh situation, a solution to the logistical issues with the new stadium and action on McDonald, but barely a peep about addressing fan violence.
I am a seat license owner, and, therefore, a season-ticket holder. In the interest of full disclosure, I’m not totally in love with Levi’s Stadium. The sightlines are great; the view of the field is great; even the food is pretty good. But I went into the new stadium hoping that it would be more convenient than Candlestick Park. To this point, I have not found that to be the case. Nonetheless, it’s a very nice facility
I have sold most of my tickets for this season. There are many reasons for why I decided to sell the tickets, but the primary motivator was that I do not feel completely secure attending a game.
It starts in the parking lot. My parking pass is for Blue Lot 1, which is the monstrosity of concrete located a couple blocks west of the stadium. I chose this lot because it is the only one that is open to all ticket holders and allows you to grill.
It was a mistake.
It is immediately clear upon entering the lot that no one tasked with running it has any control. Although there are rules about how you are supposed to park your car and lay out your tailgating spread, no one is following them because no one is capable of enforcing them. The result is a scene resembling an open-air market in a third world country – only everyone is completely intoxicated. Rows where you are supposed to park your car are almost non-existent; and you feel so closed in, that from the center of the lot, you would have a hard time determining which way is out. The general feeling in the lot is one of lawlessness and the lack of security detail is palpable.
All that said, Blue Lot 1 is easy enough to avoid if you don’t want to go there. It also seems like a stretch to suggest that the 49ers must be responsible for everyone’s comfort and safety within a two mile radius around the stadium. What I think most people – at least reasonable people – can agree on is that the 49ers have to take responsibility for what goes on within the stadium itself.
Anecdotally, it seems like fighting and violence at 49ers games are on the rise. Despite the reputation that Raiders fans carry, so far this year, more arrests occur at 49ers games than Raider games. For whatever reason, fan behavior seems to be getting worse.
Many people would likely point to alcohol and over-consumption as the problem. In other words, if you serve beer, then you have to expect fights. Those people would probably suggest that beer sales should be limited or completely eliminated in order to combat fan violence.
A fair point.
Others would say that violent people can’t be controlled and with or without alcohol, they will attack and fight and harm others. Although this is a gloomy world view, the people who hold it may also have a decent point.
But, ultimately, what does it matter why violence exists?
It’s a fascinating question, but probably one that the 49ers are not equipped to answer. Instead the team, and we as fans and patrons, should be asking how to stop or at least mitigate the effects of the violence.
My answer is simple: put uniformed security everywhere. Put them at every gate; position them at every tunnel; make them visible from everywhere in the concourse; and, yes, put them at the entrance of every bathroom.
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Taking this step would perform two equally important functions. First, it would give those not prone to violence the peace of mind that if a fight breaks out, there will be someone within sight or earshot capable of assisting. Second, it would put those prone to violence – or at least thinking about hitting someone – on notice that throwing a punch will come with consequence. Although a security guard in that bathroom last weekend might not have been able to act quickly enough to stop a punch, the guard’s presence alone may have been enough to dissuade the assailant from throwing it.
Is this a perfect solution?
No, but I don’t think there is a perfect solution. Maybe there will be just as many fights even with a truly comprehensive security detail. Maybe it will just be wasted cost to the 49ers. But we are talking, literally, about life and death here. The victim in last weekend’s attack is facing potential paralysis and limited brain function for the rest of his life, however long it lasts. The 49ers just gathered up half a billion dollars through seat licenses; and can probably afford to put together an advanced security detail, eight to ten games per year.
Some will shudder at the idea of effectively turning an NFL stadium into a police state. I understand the concern, but I am not talking about taking essential freedoms away here. I’m not even suggesting that people can’t get drunk and a little loose-lipped. I only want a decent enough security presence to ensure that 70,000 people are safe for the three or four hours that they are in the same venue.
Yes, it would mean that if you yell hateful things at opposing fans, you stand a greater chance of being escorted out. It also means that if you cause trouble, you may be arrested. There will be less leeway when it comes to personal conduct at games.
But my question is, given the event in the bathroom last week, why would we want more leeway?
My call to the 49ers is simple: keep us safe from each other.
Fan violence is becoming a problem; and the team needs to make the financial and logistical commitment to stop it. We, fans, should be able to keep ourselves in-line, but it is becoming increasingly apparent that a small minority simply cannot.
For the sake of the rest of us, please, do something about this fan experience.