Many Boston teens surveyed say Rihanna is at fault for assault
By Milton J. Valencia and Jenna Nierstedt, Globe Staff and Globe Correspondent | March 13, 2009 Here’s a conversation starter: Nearly half of the 200 Boston teenagers interviewed for an informal poll said pop star Rihanna was responsible for the beating she allegedly took at the hands of her boyfriend, fellow music star Chris Brown, in February. Of those questioned, ages 12 to 19, 71 percent said that arguing was a normal part of a relationship; 44 percent said fighting was a routine occurrence. The results of the survey, conducted by the Boston Public Health Commission across the city and equally among boys and girls, are startling for local health workers who see a generation of youths who seem to have grown accustomed, even insensitive, to domestic violence.

I’m a few weeks behind on my People reading so I don’t know all the details, but I think it’s a good societal instinct to say that a guy should never hit a girl and not blame Rihanna if she got hit. Should the woman get herself the heck out of there if she’s getting hit? Of course. (As many have recommended, most notably Oprah and Robin Givens, who knows.) I don’t know what the survey looked like but if kids were asked who was to blame for Rihanna getting hit and their first instinct wasn’t to say: Chris Brown should not have done that, that strikes me as very bad news for these 200 kids.