More Thoughts on Chris Brown

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Thank you to everyone who responded to my blog about Chris Brown. I appreciate the comments, even when I do not agree with them. 

I do not agree with “Anonymous” that this issue is just between Rihanna and Chris. DV is a problem that involves our entire society - it is NOT a family problem.

DV is a crime and must be addressed by society as a whole, not just by the victim. Are there any other crimes where we say it's just between victim and perpetrator?

What if Chris Brown had beaten another performer that wasn’t his girlfriend? Would the response have been different? Would he have been accepted back into the fold so wholeheartedly?

What if he'd beaten a male performer? Would we be so quick to say that it was just between the two of them? My guess is "no". 

Society looks at DV differently than other crimes, holds victims accountable for behavior that isn’t theirs, blames victims for the assaults, and then doesn’t hold the perpetrator accountable.

Why is that? Why are DV victims different from other victims? Until we stop blaming victims of abuse, instead of the abuser, and we hold the abuser accountable, DV will continue to be a problem.

We must see that this crime is unacceptable and we as a society must work to stop it.

Yes, Anonymous, I do think we should boycott Chris Brown’s music. We should say we are not going to support his criminal behavior and his violent outbursts. We should say to him and all other abusers, "You must be accountable for your behavior and I will not support you in your career until you take responsibility and make different decisions."

I personally have boycotted movies and TV shows when I have learned of the abusive nature of the actors. Does it make a difference? By myself, probably not.  But if more people joined me and said "ENOUGH!" maybe we could make a difference and change the world.

As Ryunosuke Satoro said, "Individually we are one drop. Together we are an ocean."