Chris Brown catapulted to the highest heights of fame at the age of 16 for having "the dance moves of Usher and a voice all his own." Three years later, he was charged for domestic violence against long-time girlfriend and fellow R&B singer Rihanna, to which he pleaded not guilty.
While I am not necessarily a huge Chris Brown fan, my little brother is - and that is what worries me. Those in the spotlight are setting examples to very impressionable children, and Brown's actions are sending a horrible message to his young fans. Raising your hand to strike someone is neither involuntary nor an accident. Yes, it may be done in the heat of a moment, but there is still a conscious decision to make that move to strike (or bite, in this case), and that is never acceptable.
According to the Domestic Violence Project of Silicon Valley, domestic violence happens 10 times more often than it is reported, making it the most under-reported crime in the United States.
The Chriannah (Don't you just love the way Hollywood names squash together oh-so-perfectly?) incident is a great wake-up call for this nation.
Many have called Rihanna out for getting the police involved, and even more have stated that it was she who instigated the attack. The truth of the matter is that nobody other than the two involved knows all of the facts. However, too many people - both men and women - sit idly by and take abuse, both physical and psychological. Even if Rihanna turns out to be the instigator, it is important that the authorities were informed.
Since a great deal of the details about the case and the two celebrities involved are coming from the likes of Perez Hilton and the reporting powerhouse that is TMZ, it may be a little hard to take the issue seriously.
I'm not saying the attention isn't warranted, though. By all means, Perez, blog to your heart's content. The more coverage the issue of domestic violence gets, the better it is for us all. With the couple's position in the public eye, it is even more of a motivator to break this pattern of violence that lurks in the darkness because not enough people are willing to talk about it.
Regardless of what comes of his ruling, this case pointed out that it could happen to basically anybody - even the perfect people in the spotlight. It may even happen again, since Rihanna has purportedly decided to take him back. Some people just don't learn.
Locking Brown away isn't going to solve the problem as much as getting him proper counseling. Instead of making this into a bigger spectacle than it already is, how about we call off the mobs, bring in the therapists and get these kids some help?
Only time will tell whether or not Brown's career is over. He has already lost a few of his endorsement deals, and his music was pulled off of various radio stations since the charges were filed against him in early February.
Maybe he'll pull a T.I. on everybody and get MTV to follow him around as he talks to kids to make sure they don't go down the same path - stranger things have happened.
Naudia Jawad is a journalism graduate student. Her column appears on Wednesdays.
