Rihanna's new music video for "Man Down" is getting criticized heavily for a scene that shows the singer shooting a man dead in cold blood.
In the video we see her pointing a pistol out of a window, before firing at a man walking in front of a large group of people. Killing him in retaliation for raping her.
"It's a 22, I call her Peggy Sue/ When she fits right down in my shoes/ What do you expect me to do/ If you're playing me for a fool/ I will lose my cool/ And reach for my fire arm/ I didn't mean to lay him down/ But it's too late to turn back now/ Don't know what I was thinking/ Now he's no longer living/ So I'm 'bout to leave town," she sings.
The video which premiered on BET on Tuesday has drawn the ire of several groups.
"If Chris Brown shot a woman in his new video and BET premiered it, the world would stop. Rihanna should not get a pass," said Paul Porter, co-founder of Industry Ears. He along with the Parents Television Council and the Enough is Enough campaign are calling on BET and its parent company Viacom to stop airing the video.
Melissa Henson of the Parents Television Council had this to say: "Instead of telling victims they should seek help, Rihanna released a music video that gives retaliation in the form of premeditated murder the imprimatur of acceptability."
Earlier today Rihanna, who was physically assaulted by then boyfriend Chris Brown two years, went on twitter to defend herself and the video.
"I'm a 23 year old rockstar with NO KIDS! What's up with everybody wantin me to be a parent? I'm just a girl, I can only be your/our voice!" she wrote. "Cuz we all know how difficult/embarrassing it is to communicate touchy subject matters to anyone especially our parents! And this is why! Cuz we turn the other cheek! U can't hide your kids from society,or they'll never learn how to adapt! This is the REAL WORLD!"
It's going to take a lot more than words on twitter to stop critics of the video like Porter, who said that in 30 years he's never seen "such a cold, calculated execution of murder in prime time."
Check out the video below and weigh in with your opinion.
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