Opinion

Allison Morris: We should be careful not to eulogise domestic abusers like George Best

George Best was a genius on the footaball pitch but had a dark side off it
George Best was a genius on the footaball pitch but had a dark side off it George Best was a genius on the footaball pitch but had a dark side off it

Earlier this week Belfast City Council announced the field where George Best learned to play football is to be preserved "in perpetuity" for future generations.

In an area of the city where green spaces are increasingly disappearing this is to be welcomed as is the associated funding to promote physical exercise among young people in the area.

However, the association with George Best has raised a few eyebrows and questions over whether the footballing legend is a suitable role model for children.

It comes not long after the screening of the BBC documentary George Best: All by himself, that not only celebrated his genius on the pitch but also had interviews with his two ex-wives that were graphically revealing about the damaged, violent and drunk man that he was behind closed doors.

Both Angie and Alex Best, while women who clearly loved the former Manchester United footballer, painted a pretty grim picture.

I reported on the death and funeral of George Best in 2005 and at that time praise was being heaped upon the man who remains on the list of the greatest footballers of all time.

On the day of the funeral I went the Northern Ireland supporters club on the Shankill Road and the Red Devil bar on the Fall Road to talk to fans who clearly adored the footballer and to show how he united people of all traditions and none.

No one had a bad word to say about him, the Best they knew was the salt of the earth, a man who would never refuse to have a picture taken or sign an autograph.

Behind closed doors it was very different.

In the documentary Alex Best talks about being hospitalised on two occasions after being attacked by George when he was on one of his many benders.

Her open and frank revelations have not always been well received and like the wives of other famous and successful men she's been accused of denigrating his legacy for simply sharing her story.

And here's the thing, should a man whose career was cut short because of his alcohol addiction, who squandered a second chance by drinking after being given a donated liver, and who was violent towards his two ex-wives and only son, be considered a role model for other working class young men?

Domestic violence in Northern Ireland is at chronic levels, the PSNI respond to a domestic incident every 19 minutes.

There were three women murdered in the last 12 months by their partners or former partners and 13,933 domestic abuse crimes recorded, the second highest level since 2004.

And yet it remains a taboo and rarely spoken about issue.

While the days of women being told they've made their bed and have to stay in a violent marriage regardless are mainly over, many women do still suffer in silence.

Women's Aid have been doing amazing and innovative work with women and children, undoubtedly saving lives in the process.

The organisation also work with Northern Ireland Probation Service who run court ordered programmes for men, confronting them with the consequences of their behaviour.

How the PSNI deal with women who are being physically and mentally abused has changed dramatically over the years with the public protection unit now employing dedicated and trained officers.

But the real battle is changing how society view the worth of women and children in comparison to men.

We have only to look at the tragic case of Clodagh Hawe in Cavan to see that we still live in a patriarchal world where women and children are treated like collateral damage

In the days after the murder of the young mother and her three sons at the hands of her hatchet wielding maniac of a husband we were told what a great guy Alan Hawe was, a pillar of the community.

George Best hospitalised his wife and had an airport named after him.

Domestic abusers do not always fit the mould of other criminals. They are to all around them ordinary men, leading ordinary lives.

Some like George Best are violent when drunk, others, consumed with jealousy, try to control every aspect of their partner's life.

Violence is rarely in isolation but almost always comes with a degree of coercive control, that can include financial and emotional abuse.

And all this will continue if we insist on holding flawed and violent men up as role models to a younger generation.

We can admire George Best's sporting ability without having to eulogise him.