Stronger Penalty For Hate Language

By now,  you should have received an email from USA Hockey entitled “Stronger Penalty For Hate Language”. If you can’t find it in your Inbox, check your Spam folder.
Hateful, discriminatory, and offensive language have no place in our sport (or any sport for that matter). Per the directive from Jim Smith, we are to swing the biggest hammer we have – the match penalty – when we hear such language. The goal is to eradicate such behavior. The best way to do so is by penalizing those actions aggressively and with zero tolerance.

If you do not hear such language, but it is reported to you, you must file a game report .Since a penalty was not assessed, use the “Other Incident Report” entry at the very bottom of the Rule Reference field in the form.When filing a game report for this kind of language, it will be important to communicate exactly  what was said. In your report, do not soften or censor the words that were spoken.

Be aware that when you issue a match penalty, the player is suspended from all USA Hockey activity, including practices and team functions until there is a hearing or until 30 days have elapsed. To that end, make sure you penalize appropriately for the language you hear.

Language that is clearly unacceptable in society, is particularly heinous, or is hateful and discriminatory should incur a match penalty.
Language that is abusive, but does not rise to the level of hateful, discriminatory, or heinous can still be penalized with a bench minor, misconduct, or game misconduct (continued conduct) per 601b2, 601b3, 601c1, 601c2, and 601e1.
From www.usahockey.com/news_article/show/1061121

*COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo.*– USA Hockey announced today a presidential directive that changes the penalty for racial/derogatory slurs of any kind that fall under Rule 601 (e. 3) from a game misconduct to a match penalty.
“We continue to get reports of disturbing incidents of racial and other derogatory slurs, behavior which is reprehensible and has absolutely no place in our game, especially around our children,” said Jim Smith, president of USA Hockey. “For reasons I cannot explain or understand, the current penalty in place does not seem to be enough of a deterrent to stop this type of conduct.”
cdn3.sportngin.com/attachments/document/1d54-2015486/Jim_Smith_Letter.pdf