Oprah Winfrey | 03/09/2009 1:55 pm

Oprah Warns Rihanna: 'He Will Hit You Again' (Video)

By The Staff at wowOwow.com

Oprah Winfrey on 'Oprah Winfrey Show'

Saddened by Rihanna’s alleged return to accused abuser Chris Brown, Oprah Winfrey is dedicating an upcoming episode this week to a discussion on domestic violence.

"Chris Brown and Rihanna, if I was your friend, I would call you up and I would say, ‘Give it some time, get yourself some counseling, take care of yourself,’" Winfrey said during a live, roundtable discussion Friday on her talk show. "Heal yourself first.”

The roundtable included Oprah’s longtime friend Gayle King, who read gruesome details of the police report from the night Brown allegedly beat, choked and slammed his girlfriend Rihanna. "Love doesn’t hurt," said Oprah, who admitted as an adult that she was abused as a child. "I’ve been saying this to women for years: If a man hits you once, he will hit you again."

Watch a clip of the March 6 episode:

Oprah first addressed the frightening incident last month on her show. Readers were angry when Oprah and Gayle King spoke highly of Brown’s character.

20 Reader Comments (so far…) Sign In or Register to comment

WEll duh! of course he will. the dude’s in a pattern of abuse.

By f p on 03/09/2009 2:01 pm

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This goes on so much in our Country and it just so happens this happened to a very public couple. Rhianna I am sure Love Chris but she needs to love herself more. It simply comes down to that, LOVE YOURSELF MORE!

By C Hardy on 03/09/2009 2:13 pm

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She is right and it is about time Oprah said so! I hope she listens!

By S.J. Morgan on 03/09/2009 2:53 pm

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Oh gawd…. there are abused women all over the world, why is this something Oprah and Dr. Phil have to weigh in on?!

By DeBúrca obj on 03/09/2009 4:17 pm

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The more public awareness from celebrity the better. I cannot believe you would not be in favor of hiding it DeB

By S.J. Morgan on 03/09/2009 4:23 pm

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The more awareness the better! Put it out there for all women to hear.

By deber B on 03/09/2009 4:30 pm

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This is exploitation of celebrity. If they want to address this issue, there are better, more intelligent ways to do it.

By DeBúrca obj on 03/09/2009 4:48 pm

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SJ, I agree, the more public attention you bring to this awful situation, maybe, just maybe it could help women get out and get help. So many women feel they dont have anywhere else to go or if they leave he will will find them…Its so sad. I have let friends stay with me while they transfer through bc they feel safe b/c of my husbands job. Once they get back out on their own, they are scared all over again…

Oprah has always spoken out against abuse and I think she should continue. I am sure she is trying to get interviews with both Rhianna and Chris but for legal reasons, I am sure neither will show up.

By C Hardy on 03/09/2009 5:39 pm

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SJ, Deber and CH…..public awareness is a must…rather it involves celebrities or anyone….this is not the 50’s anymore…DV should not be pushed under the rug and never spoke about…women are very embarrassed about being abused, but with more options available for them, they have a good chance of getting out of the situation….if not for public awareness, they would feel like they have no other choice than to live with the abuse. I hope teenagers of both sexes are listening to this and realizing verbal and physical abuse is not ok…..we need to reach the young ones to stop this cycle…..especially if they have grown up in a home where they have witnessed and been a victim themselves. Public awareness is the best source we have.

By Libra Lady on 03/09/2009 7:51 pm

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This is voyeurism, not concern about an issue. This woman’s private life is not the concern of Oprah viewers. If Oprah wants to address abuse, she should have a show about it and not drag this woman into it. Good intentions or not, it is exploitation.

By DeBúrca obj on 03/09/2009 8:04 pm

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LL…I agree. Anyone who can get their voice out about DV should go for it and who better than Oprah, most women and men listen to her & heed her advice. Chris made this case public by beating her in front of a party full of media and other celebrities that night. He has history of violence, he comes from a family with a history of violence…he didnt break the chain w/ himself as he should have. A better man (boy) would have walked away, he chose to stay & fight…he is a punk. I hope he is charged with a felony & see’s jail but it wont be the jail he needs.

By C Hardy on 03/09/2009 9:19 pm

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I hope she listens to Oprah.

By Grande Camper on 03/09/2009 5:54 pm

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I can think of few better reasons to "Exploit celebrity" than to raise the consciousness of young girls to the FACT that if a man BEATS them they do not love them.

I have wondered what took her so long to address the issue, (everyone else has), particularly given the statistics of battered women in this country. She is one of the few people a wealthy young woman who is "in love" with an abuser might listen to.

Chris Brown is doing and saying whatever he can to get her to drop the charge from a felony to a misdemeanor. she is young and vulnerable and needs women to tell her the truth.

If Rihanna has the courage to walk away and let him take the punishment he has earned, perhaps she will give other young women the courage to walk away as well. How is that "exploitation"?

By CYNTHIA NEIL on 03/09/2009 6:43 pm

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It’s great the Oprah is addressing this issue, and hopefully many women will heed her. Bet Rihanna will go back to Brown, as that is what most of these abused women do, especially if they are young. The guy says he is sorry and it will never happen again, then it does, and many of them still stay, repeatedly getting hit or worse.

By Lizzie R. on 03/09/2009 7:13 pm