Why must we cast Chris Brown as either a cynical villain or a wayward soul seeking heroic redemption? He is neither evil incarnate nor a paragon of virtue.  He is, in fact, just an angry and confused young man trying to clean up his act.

Back in March, after Brown’s vicious beating of his then girlfriend Rihanna, I wrote about Rihanna, Chris Brown, and the tenacious cycle of domestic violence.  The article discussed Brown’s own history as a childhood victim of domestic violence, before concluding:

Chris Brown is just 19, and we should hope that he has insight and strength to break out of this destructive cycle, instead of passing it on as an unintended legacy to his own offspring. Let’s not write him off just yet. But in the mean time, it’s troubling to hear the rumors that he and Rihanna are reconciling. Like or it, in our society Rihanna is an inevitable role model for young women.

And she can do better.

On June 22nd, he plead guilty to felony assault, and received five years probation and 180 days community service of cleaning graffiti and roadside trash (not  giving public speeches about domestic violence, or some other cushy gig). He was also apparently ordered to stay away from Rihanna. And of course, Brown has domestic violence treatment to complete.

Although, to the chagrin of some, Brown avoided jail time, he did plead to a felony. In fact, his punishment is arguably tougher than what a non-celebrity with no criminal record would receive for a similar assault. Moreover, forcing him to do six months of demeaning manual labor was an apt punishment for a privileged multi-millionaire entertainer.

Yesterday, July 20, Brown released an apology video on You Tube in which he said, in part:

“Since February my attorney has advised me not to speak out even though ever since the incident I wanted to publicly express my deepest regret and accept full responsibility. I felt it was time you hear directly from me that I am sorry.

“I cannot go into what happened, and most importantly am not going to sit here and make any excuses. I take great pride in me being able to exercise self control, and what I did was inexcusable. I am very saddened and very ashamed of what I have done. My mother and my spiritual teachers have taught me way better than that….

“I have told Rihanna countless times, and I am telling you today, that I am truly sorry and that I wasn’t able to handle the situation both differently and better.. I hope that others learn from my mistake. I intend to live my life so that I am truly worthy of the term ‘role model.’

Many of the comments and articles I have read ask the following questions:

• Is Brown trying to save his career? (of course)
• Is Brown really sincere? (who knows?)
• Was the apology written by his lawyers/handlers? (most likely; so what?)
• Is it enough? (of course not)

This line of questioning seems to pretty much miss the point. While it is impossible to see within someone’s soul, the apology is pretty unequivocal – note the words “ashamed,” “deepest regret,”and above all – “inexcusable.”

No, it doesn’t go into any detail about exactly what he admits to – but the whole world knows about that already. We’ve seen the nasty nasty pictures. And, duh – he just plead to felony assault. There’s a reason our criminal justice system is public and relatively transparent.

While an apology itself is clearly not “enough,” it’s exactly what we should expect from any struggling 19-year old seeking a way to get past this maelstrom. More importantly, to all the tabloids and fans who argued that Rihanna was somehow at fault for getting brutally beat up, Brown’s video sends a clear message that there is no excuse for such thuggish behavior.

But as anyone who works professionally with domestic violence issues knows, DV casts a very long shadow. Helping someone escape from the cycle of violence – be they a celebrity or a mailman – involves balancing punishment and treatment, personal responsibility and the possibility of future redemption.

Like all young kids who make serious mistakes, Brown has a long hard road ahead to make his desired changes stick over a lifetime. Domestic violence treatment itself is no picnic – just ask the clients I have had who flunked out, sometimes more than once.

Getting through treatment, doing humiliating public service, and answering to a probation officer for five yars will be enough of a challenge for this troubled young man, without the added weight of playing the part of a dubious role model.

So let’s wish Chris Brown the strength and determination to put his personal demons to rest, at least enough so that he may be able to start a family of his own free of violence and intimidation.

Brown appears – at least from news accounts – to have taken the first tentative steps towards sustainable personal change.

At least it’s a start.