Many people do not take the cyber-bullying or verbal abuse of celebrities seriously. There are those who do not believe it is a significant issue. “It comes with the territory," they respond. Some believe that celebrities have so much “success” that they should remained unfazed somehow. It is hard for many people to feel sorry for a celebrity. I will be the first to say that I cannot feel sorry for a celebrity and especially people who have gained fame because of being successful in their career. This is only because first, I am inspired by their accomplishments and by their will power that allowed them to reach their goals. Second, because I do not pity other human beings, I try, not successfully all the time, but I try to have sympathy and empathy for other individuals rather than pity. Their socioeconomic status does not matter.

The recent pictures of Kim Kardashian sporting a bikini have caused a lot of conversation. Many of these public conversations were surrounded around Kim’s supposed cellulite or other things of that nature on her body. For one, it is already embarrassing to have unflattering pictures revealed. Some people would be completely mortified if they saw pictures of themselves being exposed even on a small Facebook page that only has a few followers.

But imagine how it would feel to have an unflattering image of yourself, taken without your consent, floating around on the Internet and even being talked about more so in the media. That could be beyond mortifying for a lot of people. Then to read so many negative and offensive comments about those pictures are absolutely horrible as well! This is where I will say that many public figures have strong skin. This is a shame and not because of the fact that it happened to Kim Kardashian but because it happens to so many other people as well.

I believe that this topic is important because how can we as nation continue anti-bullying conversations, anti body-shaming conversations, and pro-love and pro-body positivity without discussing this issue? It doesn’t matter if you disagree with someone’s lifestyle, or political views. It doesn’t leave room for disrespecting someone’s humanity. You may not agree with the political views, religious, preferences of the public figure, but that does not mean that it is appropriate to bash them. Disagreeing with someone’s preferences is not an approval to participating in or facilitating their mistreatment by sideline encouragement.

When did it become acceptable to verbally abuse someone just because they are in the public eye? When did people think that this behavior was acceptable because that individual is a public figure? This is the same kind of mistreatment that has led many teens to seek an escape, an escape through suicide, or other harmful mechanisms. Although, people say that it comes with the territory that dismisses the issue and leaves the question unanswered. Why is it okay to mistreat someone because they are famous? If someone says something controversial, I am not saying that it must be ignored, especially if it has great implications for our society. But I believe that people should be treated with respect no matter their social status.