Your Voices

Editor;

I am told there are referee shortages for youth sports in Illinois and we have witnessed it as a community. It isn’t just football or basketball but all youth sports. According to The New York Times, 50,000 referees quit between 2018 and 2021. A survey from Let ‘Em Play found that 80% of new referees quit within the first 2 years. There are multiple reasons for the departure of referees, but I want to bring to attention the abuse referees are exposed to.

On April 22, 2022, www.axios.com reported that, “60% of officials surveyed in 2020 said their top reason for quitting would be verbal...