UPDATE: SO, LIKE DOMESTIC ABUSE VICTIM JANAY RICE,
WHY DO THEY STAY?
By Jaymes Powell Jr.
We all saw and felt it. A football
player throwing a boxer’s blow
into a woman’s face…knocking her
unconscious…then seeming not to
care.
The couple stayed together, yet hurt
their kids - the forgotten victims and
witnesses to domestic violence. That’s
what happened in my home.
About 30 years later, Baltimore
Ravens running back Ray Rice did
almost the same thing, punching
his fiancée and now wife in an
elevator. The NFL hastily tossed
Rice after the full video of the assault
became public, via website TMZ.
Now, after pushing legal buttons, the
former Rutgers star can return to the
pros.
Good.
The fight was between the couple
and, apparently, they made up and
got married. Let Mr. Rice go back to
work.
The hope is, however, he doesn’t
repeat the mistakes of the previously
mentioned couple - my parents,
who allowed my sister, cousins,
friends and I to frequently watch my
mother being abused. According to
the Justice Department, domestic
violence makes up for about 21
percent of all violent crime.
from domestic violence, which can
lead to scarred minds, embarrassment
and generational cycles of violence.
Crimes kids see.
But for far too many families and
children, the cycle will continue.
The Rice family has a toddler named
Rayven. With YouTube, she’ll likely
view her father’s cowardly, yet
quick, left hand for the rest of her
life. Hopefully, the Rice family will
be devoid of domestic violence and
she will only have that incident to
mentally recite.
Hopefully, Rice, whom I have covered
as a sports writer, will do what so
many other men and women haven’t
been able to: screen their children
For my nuclear family, sans father,
that violence witnessed in the 1980’s
and 90’s never repeated itself; instead,
a steadfast rebellion against it.
The lashes from my father’s belt
on my hide never hurt as much as
watching our mother beaten.
Rice’s reinstatement into the NFL,
where he is now a free agent and can
sign with any team, is great for him
and his family. Hopefully the Rice
family can show the nation – and
more importantly their daugh