When I was growing up my mother was always a friend to my siblings and me (in addition to being all the other things a mom is) and I was always grateful for that because I knew she was someone I could talk to and joke with and argue with and that nothing would ever harm that friendship.
What we call 'evil' doesn't necessarily deserve any kind of respect or understanding by any means it just deserves an acknowledgement of its complexity so we can better understand it - so we can help prevent it.