Over the weekend, U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett and Texas State Rep. Venton Jones made a move to honor two of R&B’s icons, Usher and Chris Brown. The singers are currently on a joint tour that’s scheduled to wrap in December. During their show at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, Crockett and Jones presented the artists with Congressional Record recognitions for their contributions to music and culture. After videos of the moment swept the internet, social media users slipped into a heated, divided debate! Crockett, especially, caught heat for being a woman honoring Brown, despite his documented violent past and run-ins with the law.
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Jasmine Crockett & Venton Jones Team Up To Recognize Usher & Chris Brown
Jasmine Crockett walked on stage with Venton Jones in Arlington, wearing a tied shirt, black pants and a shimmery bralette. The Texas State representative wore a striped suit jacket and slacks. Crockett engaged with the crowd on the mic as Jones stayed a few steps away. She spoke of the audience “experiencing Black Joy at the highest level.” At one point, she quoted Yung Miami, called Breezy a “real one,” and hugged him before leaving the stage.
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Social Media Tears Into Crockett For Honoring Chris Brown
After the video of Jasmine Crockett and Venton Jones spread online, social media users tore into Jasmine Crockett. Despite Jones also being present, the backlash has largely focused on Crockett. She has yet to explain her thinking behind the congressional recognitions. Still, that hasn’t stopped the internet from penning think pieces about the exchange.
Meanwhile, Venton Jones, Chris Brown and Usher have also not reacted to the pointed backlash. Keep scrolling to see a little of what’s being said.
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Why Is The Internet In Shambles Over The Recognition?
As mentioned, Chris Brown’s legal issues are part of the reason social media is going off about the congressional recognition from Jasmine Crockett and Venton Jones. The most standout incident is his 2009 domestic violence case involving Rihanna. A photo following the altercation showed RiRi’s badly bruised and swollen face, including a busted lip. Ultimately, he pled guilty to felony assault and received five years of probation, community labor and domestic-violence counseling, per PEOPLE. That probation ended in 2015. Though they reportedly rekindled by January 2013, the relationship ended again months later.
In the years since that incident, Chris Brown has been arrested multiple times. There were two separate assault incidents between 2013 and 2016. He was arrested and charged in one, and arrested but not charged in the other. Then, in 2017, his ex-girlfriend Karrueche Tran got a five-year restraining order against him. She testified in court that he physically abused her and made threats to kill her. He was not criminally convicted, and the probation ended in March 2015.
Additionally, Breezy has had multiple sexual assault and rape allegations that have not led to convictions. Then, earlier this year, he pled guilty to an affray charge in connection to the 2023 assault of a music producer in a London nightclub. He’s scheduled to be sentenced next month.
