A Jewish hockey player is taking his former employers in the East Coast Hockey League and the NHL to court over allegations of antisemitism.
Jason Bailey, a native of Ottawa, is alleging that the Bakersfield Condors of the ECHL, as well as its NHL affiliate, the Anaheim Ducks, and two Condors coaches were guilty of antisemitic harassment and discrimination.
A third-round selection in the 2005 NHL entry draft, Bailey was traded by the Ducks to the Ottawa Senators and now plays for the Senators’ AHL farm team in Binghamton. He claims Martin Raymond, the Condors’ head coach, and Mark Pederson, the team’s former assistant head coach, repeatedly targeted him with antisemitic insults.
In court documents filed last week in Los Angeles, he also alleges that his playing time was limited and that he was demoted to a team in Iowa as retaliation for raising concerns about the treatment he received.
“From the beginning of Mr. Bailey’s time with the Condors to its end, Mr. Bailey was subject to severe and/or pervasive harassment on the basis of religion by being forced to endure a barrage of antisemitic, offensive and degrading verbal attacks regarding his Jewish faith,” the court document states.
The legal complaint goes on to outline a number of instances of antisemitic harassment. Raymond allegedly said Jews “only care about money and who’s who.” Raymond also referred to his own Jewish ex-wife as a “bitch” who took all his money, and he allegedly stated “he never wanted this son to be raised Jewish or to wear a yarmulke,” the document states.
The allegations involving Pederson are also disconcerting. When he received a friend request for his Facebook page, Pederson allegedly told Bailey, “I got a friend request from a dirty Jew.”
And when Bailey’s name came up in a team meeting over who should be in charge of raising money for a team party, Pederson said, “I don’t know if we can trust him with the money. He’s Jewish.”
The documents say Bailey found his working conditions “intolerable and hostile.” He complained to Ducks assistant general manager David McNab, who told Bailey he and the Ducks found his complaints unbelievable.
Afterwards, Bailey claims, he was sent in retaliation to the Iowa Chops for two months, where he received almost no playing time. During that time, Bailey complained to Condors owner Jonathan Fleisig, who ignored his concerns.
After the Ducks tried to demote him to the Central Hockey League – Bailey cited his contract and refused the move – the team suspended Raymond for one week and Pederson for two.
The coaches each wrote letters of apology to Bailey, but the player’s Los Angeles lawyer, Keith Fink, believes the letters were completely insincere.
Raymond said his “intent was to have a jovial moment” and that as a French-Canadian, “I, too, have come face to face with bigotry and understand how such remarks can negatively affect lives.”
Pederson said he never intended to insult or hurt Bailey and “from all that has happened, I have learned and become a better person.”
Fink said the letters acknowledged the coaches’ misconduct. “Both coaches should be gone” (fired), he said, and the Condors should implement anti-discrimination training for its personnel. The teams should also put into place a proper grievance mechanism to address future complaints.
The court complaint go further. It asks for general and punitive damages, though the amount requested is currently unspecified.
Fink told The CJN that “the team did not expect Jason to take this step. This in no way will help his career within the old boy network.” Because of it, pro teams will likely pass over him when there is another player with similar abilities available, Fink suggested.
Bailey is the grandson of Holocaust survivors and was brought up to not accept antisemitic treatment, Fink said. “He comes from a family with a good set of values and character, and that means more than a paycheque at the end of the day.”
Jason’s dad, an Ottawa doctor, has the attitude of “never again. He’s that school. You have any antisemitism and you put yourself in front of a speeding train. That’s the mentality.”
Fink said that since the story broke, he received six e-mails in two days from college and profession athletes saying they had experienced similar incidents and thanking Bailey for raising the issue.
Alex Voihanski agrees Jewish players face antisemitic comments at various stages of their careers. Voihanski, general manager of International Scouting Services, which scouts, evaluates, analyzes and ranks players aged 16 to 19, said “what Bailey’s reporting is pretty extreme, like something you’d have expected 30 or 40 years ago.”
But he’s heard from Jewish players at the college and junior levels that they too have faced antisemitism. “The guys don’t report it because they don’t want to be blackballed. I’m sure it’s sometimes done in jest, but it’s a game that historically has not been full of minorities.
“I don’t think it’s rampant, but it’s there. I’ve heard it from numerous guys, everything from ‘dirty Jew’ to comments about Jews and money.”
Voihanski described Bailey as a very good skater who plays a grinding game and is adept at cycling the puck down low. He was slated to be part of the Canadian team at the 2007 World Jewish Championships in Israel, but had to pull out when the Ducks changed the start of their rookie camp.
The Ducks and Condors have not responded to media requests for comments. Ironically, the Ducks are owned by Henry and Susan Samueli, philanthropists known for giving to a number of Jewish causes.
ESPN.com reported last week that the NHL is investigating Bailey’s allegations.