Ray Rice was shown in a video punching
his then-fiance and current wife, Janay
Rice
The release of a video by TMZ on Monday
showing former Baltimore Ravens running
back Ray Rice punching his then-fiance and
current wife, Janay Rice has caused
outrage all over the world.
The incident reportedly occurred in February
2014 and the couple later got married in March.
Rice was seen assaulting Janay in an elevator
after which he dragged her out. His contract with
the Ravens has now been terminated after he was
earlier suspended for 2 games.
Pertinent on the minds of most people however is
the question, why did Janay Rice marry a man
who had punched her unconscious?
This situation has now led to a viral Twitter
hashtag "#WhyIStayed" and a rejoinder,
"#WhyILeft".
Women (and even men) have taken the
opportunity to share their experiences and explain
why leaving an abusive relationship is not as easy
as it seems.
The hashtag was created by writer, Beverly
Gooden, who was physically abused by her
former husband for over a year. Through her
website, Gooden explains:
"Leaving was a process, not an event," "And
sometimes it takes a while to navigate through
that process."
She also expressed the hope that the hashtag will
help people "find a voice, find love, find
compassion, and find hope" and it seems that it
has. Read some of the responses from Twitter:
"#whyistayed is the most beautiful thing I've
seen on twitter. It feels like a cuddle that comes
from someone who gets it"
Rachel @CaptainRGeorge
"The heartbreaking #WhyIStayed hashtag
chronicles why people remain in abusive
relationships. Twitter at its best."
Chuba Ezekwesili @ChubaEzeks
"#whyistayed is a very real phenomena. The
culture of codependence, passive-aggression and
malignant, violent narcissism has to be looked at"
Chris Coon @Coondawg68
There are 2 really important hashtags
happening, #whyistayed & #whyileft. Educate
yourself. Understand before judging people's
relationship
Abby Nocon @aanocon
"Thank you to the brave souls of #whyistayed
and #whyileft for sharing their experiences. This
is so necessary"
Angela Buck @angelaadelle
"#whyistayed because eventually my self-esteem
was so twisted that I genuinely believed I was in
the relationship I deserved"
Nick Mattos @nickmattos2 4h
"#whyistayed bc a PASTOR told me that unless
he was beating me I had to make it work. Bc u
know, divorce is a sin. So is abuse dumbass."
Joy L. S. Hoffman @joy_hoffman
"PS - for those of you reading #whyistayed &
#whyileft with no personal experience of those
situations, you don't get to judge anyone."
Misha @mbuggie42
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless handheld from Glo Mobile.