Ray Rice is an animal.
A sadistic, sociopath.
He punched his then fiance in the face twice, knocking her out the second time. Then dragged her unconscious body out of the elevator, then LIED and said he didn't punch her but pushed her and she bumped her head. He's shown no remorse throughout this entire ordeal and he has yet to actually apologize to his now wife, Janay Palmer. Yet he's got apologies in spades for his (former) teammates and his fans. He's got crocodile tears to shed for losing his spot on the Ravens. But as for the domestic violence against the mother of his child and the woman he's supposed to love? Nothing.
I'd like nothing more than to see Ray Rice rot in jail along with Chris Brown, Floyd Mayweather and the rest of those assholes who enjoy using women as punching bags to work out their insecurities and shortcomings.
And what is this Self-Defense nonsense that all the Ray Rice supporters keep talking about?
Tell me in what universe does a slap justify a knockout? Since when does a woman deserve a punch in the face for charging at someone or looking like she's going to hit someone? Look at Janay and tell me how much bodily damage she could actually do to a trained boxer and a football player like Ray Rice? It's not self-defense if she never actually got a hit in. I don't care how much attitude she had or how loud she was or how emotional she seemed - that woman did not deserve to be punched in the face and then have her body dragged out of a hotel elevator. She did not deserve to embarrass herself on national TV by apologizing for being abused.
I don't know a thing about Janay Palmer's upbringing. I don't know if she'd been abused before she had the misfortune of meeting Ray Rice. I don't know if she's always had low self-esteem or if this is something new. What I do know is that I'm sad for her. I'm also afraid for her well-being. Because looking at the video footage and watching Ray Rice's body language as he followed her into the elevator it seems like he intended to engage in a physical altercation with her. I've seen abuse first hand enough to know what it looks like. He went into that elevator and practically stood on top of Janay - breathing down on her like some kind of rabid animal - then he appeared to hit her before she charged him. Those two punches happened so cavalierly that it made me believe he'd done it before. And he'll do it again. So I'm definitely afraid for Janay Palmer's well-being.
I'm disgusted that there are actually people out there who support Ray Rice. Floyd Mayweather wished Ray Rice "nothing but the best." Stephen A. Smith was telling us not to "close the door on a 27 year old." Not to mention the dozens of hateful tweets I got from all the male Ray Rice supporters.
I'm also appalled by the women who have judged Janay Palmer's public defense of her abusive husband. Sure it's infuriating that she went ahead and married him after what he did to her. But turning against her and saying things like, "She got what she deserved" isn't going to help her or any woman in an abusive relationship. I'm not saying "don't judge people because God is the only one that can judge our lives." For those of you who do believe that - cool - but as for me and my house - fuck that. I highly doubt God would frown upon me for judging Ray Rice. So I will weigh in on this situation - I will cry out loud against domestic violence. Ray Rice should be condemned for his actions and especially his lack of remorse. As for Janay Palmer - that's something she will have to figure out in her own time. We can't force her to see the light. We can't force her to leave that toxic environment much as we'd like to. All we can do is Pray for her.
As for this self-defense thing - maybe more women should start taking self-defense classes. I know I'm considering it. Let's be prepared just in case our so-called knights in shining armor turn into psychos. We should be able to defend ourselves in situations like that. Let's take it one step further and instead of ballet classes, let's start putting our daughters in Taekwon do classes. Let's say, "Fuck the gender roles" and start lifting some goddamn weights.
Because I'm tired of being afraid that one day I'll be like Janay Palmer. For me, abuse goes way back to my childhood starting with my alcoholic father. In my early twenties I secretly thought I deserved to be in an abusive relationship with a man who made jokes about me being physically and sexually abused as a child whenever we fought and actually had the nerve to hit me - once. I was lucky though - I got out of that relationship and eventually, I started to believe that I deserved better.
But I've been afraid ever since. To the point where I walk into bars and immediately search for the unattended chairs and beer bottles I might have to use as weapons just in case people get too drunk and shit gets out of control. I'm afraid all the time to the point where the cups of scalding hot coffee that I drink serve two functions; 1) caffeine and 2) potential weapon in case some asshole gets a little too close or looks at me the wrong way. I'm afraid to the point where I don't want to be alone in a room with a man I don't think I could physically take.
I'm tired of being afraid. I'm tired of being angry. I'm tired of hearing all these stories that confirm my suspicions about how much men hate women. I'm tired. We are not here for the pleasures of men to do with as they please. We have to find a way to make them understand that.
Because clearly they just aren't getting it.
No comments:
Post a Comment