In case you missed it, on Tuesday night’s episode of “Christina Milian Turned Up,” the reality star revealed some disturbing news. As part of the launch for her latest project, Stop Attack, an emergency assault app that helps people in abusive relationships record the violence they’re experiencing, Milian revealed she is a domestic violence survivor.
“So I was 17 going into 18 and I met a boy and he had this sarcasm about him that I just thought was super funny,” Christina explained. “But that sarcasm turned out to be something a little bit more dark than I expected and I had no idea what I was getting myself into,” she told author and domestic violence survivor Tanya Williams.
She continued by recalling the mind games and feeling like there was no way out.
“When you’re in an abusive relationship, you’re fighting for your life every day,” Milian said. “It’s not just one moment.” She added, “I remember being that girl in the middle of the gas station trying to call 9-11 or call my mom and he’s got me by my head and by my hair and he’s pulling me back and there’s people just watching and they don’t know what to do. And all you could hope for is that someone will save you. But at the same time, you don’t know how to save yourself.”
The “Grandfathered” star went on to describe an instance where she was forced to play a game of “real Russian roulette.”
“He literally put a bullet in the gun and pointed it at my face,” Christina explained. “Staring down the barrel of a gun is the scariest thing you could ever experience. It’s not funny, it’s not for the movies. There’s a chance of life or death in one click, that’s it.”
However, in the end, it was her mother, Carmen, who saved her life.
“I woke up one day and realized that my family was just trying to help me,” said the 34-year-old. “And gave myself the courage and the strength to not call him and invite him back into my life,” Milian said of the time Carmen bought her a ticket to New York and she was able to disappear for a bit and not call him.
While Milian escaped her abusive relationship, her story is a reminder that domestic violence is an insidious problem deeply rooted in our culture. According to the FBI, the number of American troops killed in Afghanistan and Iraq between 2001 and 2012 was 6,488. The number of American women who were murdered by current or ex male partners during that time was 11,766. That’s nearly double the amount of casualties lost during war.
Although women are much more likely to be victims of intimate partner violence, making up 85 percent of domestic abuse victims, men too, about 15 percent, face some sort of sexual abuse. If you are one of these people and you too feel like you have no way out, we urge you to call The National Domestic Abuse Hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE (7233), where an advocate can assist you.
For other stars who have survived domestic violence, hit the flip.
