So Sad...

If what various news organizations are reporting is true, that Rihanna has "gone back" to Chris Brown, then I'm sad. No one deserves to be abused.

The statistics are scary. According to the American Institute on Domestic Violence, over 5.3 million women are abused each year, and domestic violence is the leading cause of injury to women. The average woman suffers from three to five incidents before giving up on the relationship.

I wonder how many times Rihanna has suffered because of an "incident". I wonder if she has blamed herself - I pushed him to far; I knew he was in a bad mood; It was my fault.

Someone close to me is a survivor of domestic violence. From an early age I was told that there is no tolerable level of violence. There is no excuse, there is no explanation.

Mr. Brown is innocent until proven guilty, and I hope that he is; I hope that the events of February 7/8 have been misstated. I'm pretty sure I'm hoping in vain.

Nobody - woman, man, child - deserves to be abused. There is no action bad enough that justifies being abused by a partner or loved one.

I do hope that this wish is not in vain, that Rihanna, and all battered people, realize their own self worth and escape from the hell of domestic violence. There are shelters, there is help. There is HOPE.

Please see http://www.domesticviolence.org/ for resources if you or someone you love is in an abusive relationship.