Rihanna and Chris Brown back together!!!

 It’s 2am, I think, and like most other nights I can’t sleep.

So what do I decide to do? I decide to Google stories..hmm. What to read? What to read?

Obama and his budget plans..nah too heavy.

Watch past American Idol reject videos on You Tube..nah too funny.

Read about Rihanna and Chris Brown getting back together.Yup! Just right!

What role models these two are? 

His sadistic behaviour, her naive acceptance of it and her resulting forgiveness of him leaves me with a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach and a sour taste in my mouth BUT  I’m not surprised . Many victims forgive their partners and tolerate intimate partner abuse for years and should they find the strength of will to leave they are at a high risk of being killed by their former partners and Rihanna with all her wealth and beauty is no different.

But their case is different for obvious reason the entire world is watching. And her ’forgiveness’ of him will have serious and lasting consequences for domestic violence agencies and law enforcement across the US. Domestic violence advocates better brace themselves for the onslaught of victims who will unfortunateley and undoubtedly say, “If Rihanna can go back to Chris Brown after all that shit why can’t I go back to him/her?” and victims who are already unwilling to prosecute will now site their reconciliation as proof of why charges aren’t necessary ‘because we’re working things out’,  because of these two people the entire DV world has just got a whole lot harder as if it needed to be.

Rihanna’s alleged assault puts domestic violence in spotlight..

We don’t know all the facts but what we do know is that Chris Brown was arrested for allegedly assaulting Rihanna.

If Rihanna was indeed a victim of domestic violence she is only one of the estimated 1.3 million women and 835 000 men who are  physically assaulted by an intimate partner annually in the United States.

I have been and continue to be involved with agencies that seek to protect women and men from domestic violence-I urge you to get involved to help prevent domestic violence you could save a life or lives!

Here are some brief stats provided by the U.S. Department of Justice Bureau of Justice Statistics, the American Bar Association, the American Institute on Domestic Violence and Feminist.org.

Domestic violence is a global problem:  At least one woman in every three (think about three women you know and then read this again) has been beaten, coerced into sex, or otherwise abused in her lifetime. Most often the abuser is a member of her own family.

Approximately four million American women experience a serious assault by an intimate partner during a 12-month period.

Black females experienced intimate partner violence at a rate 35% higher than that of white females, and about 22 times the rate of women of other races. Black males experienced intimate partner violence at a rate about 62% higher than that of white males and about 22 times the rate of men of other races.

African-American women experience significantly more domestic violence than White women in the age group of 20-24.

The health-related costs of rape, physical assault, stalking, and homicide by intimate partners exceed $5.8 billion each year.

Lost productivity and earnings due to intimate partner violence accounts for almost  $1.8 billion each year.

Women are more likely to be attacked by someone they know rather than by a stranger.

1, 232 women and 440  men approximately, ARE KILLED, KILLED each year by an intimate partner.