Sometimes it seems people have nothing better to do than to put down others, complain and be negative on social media. Those in the public eye especially seem to get the brunt of these negative attacks. Such is the case with Kristi Gordon, a chief meteorologist for Global BC News in Canada.
During her first pregnancy, Kristi was shocked when she began receiving hate mail in the form of emails and social media comments about the maternity clothing she chose to wear on air.
“It was horrible last time,” she said on the air. She then announced her second pregnancy and asked the public to please be nice and refrain from the negative comments this time around. Sadly, her comments seemed to fuel the fire and the public began attacking her appearance with fury once again.
Hateful comments began pouring in.
“Nowhere on North America TV have we seen a weather reader so gross as you,” one said. “Your front end looks like the Hindenburg and your rear end looks like a brick [censored] house… We now turn off Global.”
“Buy some decent clothes and have some respect for your unborn child,” another one said. “You’re not the first pregnant woman. OMG.”
Thankfully the negative comments sparked outrage among most viewers and support began rolling in for Gordon. Many posted their own pregnancy pictures, or put pillows under their shirts with the hashtag #KushionsForKristy.
Gordon wrote a thank you post to her haters on her blog, because she felt she had learned a valuable lesson.
Initially, she had tried to shrug the letters off, but she increasingly became concerned about her weight.
“I couldn’t believe it!” she wrote. “I had let these ridiculous letters get to me. No matter how rational or confident you are, the mean things people say can have an impact,” she said. “The negative thoughts seep in when you don’t even realize it. Even a little joking comment could do some damage. Hopefully this can help us all be more aware of our impact on others.”
I have to admit this story really got to me. How petty have people become when as a society we are leaving hateful comments about a pregnant woman’s appearance? Working as a writer and in social media myself, I see it all the time in the comments people leave. Moms attack moms, men (and women) make sexist and derogatory remarks. People hide behind their computer screens and leave hateful comments, and surprisingly even on positive stories. Why? It’s like a terrible disease being spread over social media. It makes people more bitter, more angry, and more sad. It divides us. My hope is stories like this will raise awareness of this increasingly growing trend, and that readers will think twice before leaving a comment. After all, by lifting others, we rise ourselves.
