Imagine being a pop singer like Lauren Mayberry, who fronts indie-pop band Chvrches. They’re famous across the world, without doing red carpets, without having paparazzi following them, without being splashed across tabloids falling out of clubs. That’s the best sort of pop star life, isn’t it? To just be cherished for the music instead of the bullshit around it.
However, that can’t really be said because, just like so many other women who dare to exist in the public eye, Lauren’s been victim to some pretty vile Instagram comments.
She uploaded to Instagram a screengrab of a comment she’d received, at first naming the guy on Twitter as 50istoohigh, but then blanking out the user’s name for Instagram:
‘I want to push a cheesegrater into your pussy and quickly pull it out so that I can enjoy raping you @chrvches’
And here’s how she responded:
All of the comments under this picture? Supportive, eg, ‘We support you Lauren’ and ‘I looked up “kickass strong woman” in the encyclopaedia and there was a picture of you. Much respect.’
Some are even suggesting vigilantism: ‘I wanna punch this Douche !’ and ‘is there any way to track down who said this and make sure he is punished? (with or without a cheese grater)’
But we think that Lauren’s approach, to take the time out to speak out about it, not only shames her trolls into knowing this isn’t OK, but could potentially draw the powers that be at Instagram (and Facebook, remember they’re pretty much the same company) towards addressing what clearly is a big troll problem that in so many cases disproportionately negatively affects women.
Well done, Lauren, may you never have to do this again.
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Follow Sophie on Twitter @sophwilkinson
This article originally appeared on The Debrief.