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9 celebrities who have spoken about their experience of domestic abuse
It can happen to the people you might least expect.
Domestic abuse can happen to anyone. Whether you're young or old; rich or poor, you can find yourself in a relationship with somebody who mistreats you in a multitude of ways. As we know, not even celebrities - with all the apparent opportunity in the world - are immune to domestic abuse. Here are 9 famous people who have bravely spoken about their own experiences:
Rihanna
Rihanna was famously photographed in 2009 with black eyes and a bruised and bloody face after her then-boyfriend, singer Chris Brown, assaulted her in his car and left her on the side of the street. Years later, in November 2015, Rihanna addressed the violence and her subsequent label as a "a poster child for victims of domestic abuse" in an interview with Vanity Fair.
"A lot of women, a lot of young girls, are still going through it. A lot of young boys too. It's not a subject to sweep under the rug, so I can't just dismiss it like it wasn't anything, or I don't take it seriously," Rihanna said in the cover interview. "But, for me, and anyone who's been a victim of domestic abuse, nobody wants to even remember it. Nobody even wants to admit it. So to talk about it and say it once, much less 200 times, is like… I have to be punished for it? It didn't sit well with me."
Amber Heard
In the legal papers for her divorce from Johnny Depp in May 2016, actress Amber Heard alleged she had been abused emotionally and physically during their marriage - something he strenuously denies. Nevertheless, in an open letter to Porter magazine in December 2016, Amber shared a message for victims of abuse.
“You are not alone,” she wrote in the letter. “You may have suffered alone behind closed doors, but you are not alone. You need to know that. I want to remind you of your strength, a strength that has been multiplied by the number of women who stand silently behind you - a truth that allowed me to break down the doors I once found myself behind.
"No matter how terrible or terrifying surviving trauma may be, unfortunately, it can pale in comparison to what followers. It's no wonder so many of us feel we need to keep quiet or risk our safety to try to maintain our dignity by quietly enduring. The fear of being ostracised from society is just about the most terrifying prospect there is".
Reese Witherspoon
In an emotional interview with Oprah Winfrey, Reese Witherspoon revealed she had been involved in an emotionally abusive relationship at a young age. When she was asked by her Wrinkle In Time co-star what the most difficult decision she ever made was, Reese replied: "For me probably leaving an abusive relationship".
Without divulging too much information, Reese said she managed to find the courage to leave when "a line got drawn in the sand and it got crossed.
"My brain just switched and I knew it was going to be very difficult but I just couldn't go any further," she said. "I was a different person too. It changed who I was on a cellular level - the fact that I stood up for myself."
Alice Liveing
Fitness influencer Alice Liveing (formerly Clean Eating Alice) suffered an emotionally and physically abusive relationship at the hands of her first boyfriend, when she was just 16. Speaking to Cosmopolitan UK, she explained how the impact of the emotional abuse ended up affecting her for longer than the physical abuse.
"Everyone knows that punching someone isn’t okay, but it’s the emotional stuff that is a lot harder to rationalise not being your fault," she said.
Charlize Theron
Charlize Theron is an active campaigner of support for victims of abuse, having opened up two rape crisis centres. The reason behind her passion for the cause dates back to her childhood. Growing up in South Africa with her mother and an abusive, alcoholic father, she witnessed physical violence regularly. Ultimately, Charlize's mother shot and killed her father in self-defence when Charlize was just 15.
In a New York Times interview from 2017, Charlize addressed what happened. “That was my entire childhood. My trauma was all of that," she said.
Christina Aguilera
Christina Aguilera also grew up in a domestically abusive household. Speaking to Us Weekly about her approach to dealing with it, she said:
"It's a subject that really hits home with me because I've always been pretty vocal and open about my own experiences in witnessing domestic violence in the home and neighbouring homes around me, so it was something that was pretty constant in my younger upbringing.
"It is a hush, hush subject. Not everybody likes to wear it on their sleeve and talk about it. It makes people uncomfortable and there's a lot of shame around it. But that's why for me, it's so important for me to speak my truth and helping others to find theirs and to find their own hope in a hopeless situation."
Gwyneth Paltrow
Although she hasn't spoken about any of her previous romantic relationships as having been abusive, Gwyneth Paltrow recently described how her working relationship with shamed film producer Harvey Weinstein had all the signs of a "classic abusive relationship".
Speaking to the New York Times Magazine last month, Gwyneth explained how he manipulated her: "He could be truly horrible and mean and then be incredibly generous. It was kind of like a classic abusive relationship.
'The one time that Harvey propositioned me was really almost the least of it in terms of how onerous that relationship was," she added. "It was very quid pro quo and punitive, and I always felt like I was on thin ice."
Mariah Carey
In her early twenties, Mariah Carey was married to record label boss Tommy Mottola, who was twenty years her senior. The pair split after four years together, but almost two decades later on her TV programme Mariah’s World, the singer alleged suffering coercive control at the hands of her former husband.
"I was with someone at the time that had a lot of control over my life," she said. "He was older than me by a lot and had a lot of power and he wanted me to remain away from most people.
"I never thought I would get out of there."
Stacey Solomon
Loose Women presenter Stacey Solomon spoke candidly on the programme last year about her experience of an abusive relationship when she was younger.
Speaking about the devastating effects it can have on your life, Stacey said: "I was in an abusive relationship and it makes you forget who you are. It made me feel like I'd never be the same person again. No matter what I do, I'll always be this weird version of myself.
"A part of me does begrudge that person for taking that away from me. If someone says something over and over again, it can embed in you," she added.
Cat is Cosmopolitan UK's features editor covering women's issues, health and current affairs. news, features and health. The route to her heart is a simple combination of pasta and cheese (somewhat ironic considering the whole health writing thing), and she finds it difficult to commit to TV series so currently has about 14 different ones on the go.
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