- Rihanna has weighed in on the Snapchat ad that referenced her violent 2009 assault at the hands of rapper Chris Brown.
- The ad intentionally shamed victims of domestic violence, Rihanna wrote in a post on her Instagram Story.
- “…all the women, children and men that have been victims of DV in the past and especially the ones who haven’t made it out yet…you let us down!” Rihanna wrote. “Shame on you.”
Rihanna has responded to the Snapchat ad that appeared to make light of rapper Chris Brown’s brutal attack on her in 2009.
The ad, which asked users whether they’d rather “Slap Rihanna” or “Punch Chris Brown,” appeared on Snapchat earlier this week.
Users immediately complained about the ad, a reference to Brown’s violent assault, and Snapchat quickly pulled the ad off its platform and issued an apology, saying that the ad was approved in error.
Now, Rihanna has weighed in via a post on her Instagram story, writing that the ad intentionally brought shame onto victims of domestic violence:
“Now Snapchat I know you already know you ain’t my fav app out there! But I’m just trying to figure out what the point was with this mess! I’d love to call it ignorance, but I know you ain’t that dumb! You spent money to animate something that would intentionally bring shame to DV victims and make a joke of it!!! This isn’t about my personal feelings, cause I don’t have much of them…but all the women, children and men that have been victims of DV in the past and especially the ones who haven’t made it out yet…you let us down! Shame on you. Throw the whole app-oligy away.”
Here’s the post in full:
After Rihanna posted the message around 11 a.m. ET, Snap’s stock fell more than 4%.
Rihanna has rarely spoken about Brown’s assault over the years, but the attack left her with a battered face and body, including two black eyes, large contusions caused by Brown’s ring, a split lip, and bite marks and contusions on her hands and body.
Brown was later sentenced to five years of probation and performed community service as a result of the assault.