ESPN commentator warns women not to "provoke" domestic violence

By Dustin M Braden - 26 Jul '14 12:00PM

A popular ESPN commentator has found himself at the center of a controversy surrounding domestic violence after remarks and Tweets where he suggested that some women "provoke" violence against them.

The Wire provides a sample of what the commentator, Stephen A. Smith said on his show, First Take.

"But what I've tried to employ the female members of my family, some of who you all met and talked to and what have you, is that again, and this what, I've done this all my life, let's make sure we don't do anything to provoke wrong actions, because if I come, or somebody else come, whether it's law enforcement officials, your brother or the fellas that you know, if we come after somebody has put their hands on you, it doesn't negate the fact that they already put their hands on you. So let's try to make sure that we can do our part in making sure that that doesn't happen."

Later in the show, Smith reiterated his point about women knowing when not to provoke violence against them.

Again, courtesy of The Wire, "We know they're wrong. We know they're criminals. We know they probably deserve to be in jail. In Ray Rice's case, he probably deserves more than a 2-game suspension, which we both acknowledged. But at the same time, we also have to make sure that we learn as much as we can about elements of provocation."

As if twice warning that women are responsible for violence against them weren't enough, Smith took to Twitter to again make the point. The string of tweets has since been deleted, but Thought Catalog managed to get a screenshot.

Smith was roundly criticized for his words on Twitter, even by other ESPN analysts like Michelle Beadle.

So I was just forced to watch this morning's First Take. A) I'll never feel clean again B) I'm now aware that I can provoke my own beating.

— Michelle Beadle (@MichelleDBeadle) July 25, 2014