Searing images of the Vancouver Stanley Cup riot went viral in real time on YouTube, followed closely by newscasts and front pages of newspapers around the world. This lamentable event even earned a Wikipedia feature that will, unfortunately, be available on search engines for years to come.
But surprisingly little has appeared in the business media about the riot's significant impact on local retailers, the front-line victims. Forlorn shopkeepers surveying ravaged and robbed premises knew that once the physical destruction is repaired, they still face the prospect of losing the key tourist season, given that summer-stock items had to be ordered months ago. And even those whose stores escaped the carnage are understandably apprehensive about the impact on tourism by the global news coverage of Vancouver's darkest hour. Shop owners aren't the only ones whose livelihood is threatened; the image of a despairing tradesman standing beside a torched truck containing his precious tools was a heart-wrenching example.
The impact isn't limited to this dismayed and ashamed city. Just as the safe and successful Winter Olympics reinforced Canada's positive image in the minds of people around the world, the pictures of "Canada's most livable city" erupting into a war zone fostered a new perspective abroad. Corporate and national reputations are defined by the first thing that comes to mind when the name of a company or country is mentioned. Unfortunately, Canada's top-of-mind impression took a hit on June 15, and our reputation has been one of our key assets in international business dealings. The Vancouver violence is even more shocking to international observers because of our reputation for being accommodating, safe and reliable. That jarring juxtaposition is what makes the Vancouver riot so damaging.
It's not that post-game sports riots are unfamiliar elsewhere. The British use the word "yob" (boy, backward) to describe aggressive and often drunk young men. Europe's soccer riots are legion, to the point where stadiums place opposing fans in separate "cages." But at least soccer hooliganism usually takes the form of opposing yobs beating one another senseless. Vancouver's post-game mayhem was different. It was an assault on innocent people and their property, as was the post-hockey game attack on shops in downtown Montreal in May, 2010.
After such events, the focus often falls on what the police could and should have done better. There is little doubt the Vancouver Police badly underestimated both the crowd size and potential for violence. But focusing on that error is too narrow; decisions made by the mayor and civic officials also helped fuel an anarchist's dream scenario of overwhelming numbers, booze and fan disappointment. Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson's vow not to follow Boston's move to forbid downtown jumbo screens set the stage for an enormous party, with tens of thousands flocking to the city centre to see the game. City officials helped the massive gathering to turn into a drunken party by keeping bars open even after provincial officials had wisely decided to close liquor stores early.
Vancouver's business community has every reason to question the Mayor's statement that the riot won't stop the city from holding large events. It seems his administration is prepared to again risk the livelihood of local businesses, and our country's international reputation, to host huge parties where only bar owners benefit. It's time for all mayors and city councillors across the country to think long and hard about the folly of turning their downtowns into party zones.
It has been a profound emotional blow for Vancouverites to plummet from the euphoric highs of the Olympics and the exciting prospect of winning a Stanley Cup to their worst nightmare. But if that great city reacts with determination to show the world the true goodness and resiliency of its citizenry, Vancouver can exemplify the adage that what doesn't destroy you makes you stronger.