Let me state my bias up front – I am among the many who has NOT forgiven Chris Brown for using his then-girlfriend Rihanna’s face as a punching bag that fateful night in February 2009. Disappointed does not begin to describe how I felt when I heard the news and saw the photos — up until that point I was a HUGE Chris Brown fan, proud owner of both his CDs, which enjoyed heavy rotation both in my truck and on my iPod… But like many, I could not reconcile the image of the sweet, promising young entertainer I’d come to adore with the revelation that he had brutally beaten the woman he claimed to love. I have watched several close friends suffer through physically abusive relationships, and that kind of behavior does not fly with me. Men that hit women do not get a pass. I knew as soon as the news broke that I would never be able to purchase a Chris Brown CD again in good conscience–there is not one part of me that wants to support or silently condone such inexcusable behavior…
Now don’t get me wrong — I believe in second chances, and I also believe that folks can grow, mature, and be rehabilitated. But the most disturbing thing to me about the fall of Chris Brown (and trust me, there are MANY things about this whole situation I find utterly disturbing), is the lack of remorse and self-reflection on Chris’s part, and his blatant unwillingness to take sincere responsibility for what he did. Throughout this whole ordeal, Chris has pouted, made excuses, offered up weak apologies, and most alarmingly, tried to paint himself as the victim in this whole ordeal… Waaaaa, radios aren’t playing my new single… Waaaaaa, people keep bringing up old shit…. Waaaa, the media won’t give me a pass cause I’m black… Waaaa, why can’t we all just move on already…
Cry me a fucking river, Chris. Then go drown yourself in it.
Oh, was that harsh? I’m sorry, I’m stuck on the image of Rihanna’s bloodied face, and the scores of headlines in any given month of women who were killed by abusive husbands, boyfriends, and lovers who learned growing up that it was okay to batter women. And the generation of young girls coming of age right now, who are going to take away from this situation the message that you can overlook domestic violence as long as the guy says he’s sorry. Who cares if he means it or not.
Granted, time has passed… He has completed his community service and stayed out of trouble. There’s a new CD ready for release, and Chris is ready to restart his music career. He even landed a gig on Good Morning America to get the album release some national exposure. But instead of showing up for his interview new and improved, and thankful for the opportunity, he throws a hissy fit because Robin Roberts had the nerve to ask him about the Rihanna incident, goes off on a producer, and throws a chair through a window. Really, Chris? Good to see those court-ordered anger management courses are working for ya.
I have watched almost every interview he’s done post-Rihanna gate, and every single time I am just bothered by the fact that he doesn’t seem to get it.
Recently, Kevin Powell wrote an “Open Letter to Chris Brown“, a sincere attempt to sit the boy down and let him know, man to man, what he needs to be focusing on to evolve through this mess. I pray Chris takes time out of his busy promotional schedule to read it. But in case Chris has an aversion to reading, another enlightened fella provided this short youtube clip titled simply “A History Lesson for Chris Brown.”
Yep, homeboy pretty much summed it up, didn’t he?
