Listen: Paxton Fielies speaks up about being cyber-bullied
Former Idols SA winner, Paxton Fielies was targeted by a Facebook troll about her looks and family in a series of hurtful memes.
Listen as Jane Linley-Thomas chats with Paxton Fielies about being cyber-bullied, or read the details under the podcast.
In a series of Facebook posts, Paxton Fielies has been a target of blogger and meme creator, Isaac Meyer. These posts pick on the young songstress' looks, family, and roots.
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In an interview with Jane, Paxton chats about how she did not react to these posts, so as to not indulge the bully, and that all she wants is to spread positivity.
Being bullied is no easy feat and we cannot begin to imagine how it feels when you are constantly trolled for just being yourself. Fellow celebrities stood up for Paxton calling for an end to the bullying. Paxton went on to say that she felt disrespected as the bully picked on her family as well.
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According to IOL, a recent online study revealed that South Africa ranked the second highest at 88% in the awareness of cyberbullying, after Sweden and Italy which was 91% respectively.
Among the countries that were surveyed, South Africa showed the highest prevalence of cyberbullying, based on over half of the parents who knew of a child their community who had been a victim of cyberbullying. The figure showed an increase of 24% from 2011
It's clear to see that no one is immune to cyberbullying. 'Modern Family' star, Sarah Hyland has also been the victim by social media trolls for being too skinny.
Read: Words are my superpower: The nine-year-old writing an end to bullying
Paxton encourages her fans to know their worth, and not to react as this is what the bully ultimately wants.
It's time for us all to put an end to bullying today!