Sometimes I really hate the internet. OK, I hate the internet borderline all the time, but that's beside the point. If you're an avid twatt—I mean Twitter user, you may have noticed the hashtag "Save Marina Joyce" trending. Many folks had no idea who the 19-year-old YouTuber was, but cue my stereotypical hipster card, I knew who she was. I've watched her religiously in my second year of college because I was really into English YouTubers back then. So, needless to say, when I saw she was trending I was worried.
But I quickly set my worries aside after I noticed that she was telling her fans that she was OK. For whatever reason though her fans did not want to believe it and the situation got out of control. I get it, for the past few months there was drastic change in Marina’s character, but to poorly assume she's being abused and forced to make her videos but then discrediting her when she was saying she’s OK is NOT OK. The mainstream media ran with the ISIS plot thing. Pure foolishness. I’m not shaming any of her fans for being concerned but, I am calling them out on their nonsense for not listening to her. It’s almost as if her fans would prefer she was in actual danger. It’s already bad enough with trolls on the internet and the multiple YouTubers using this fiasco as a means to promote themselves. The level of fake sympathy was so disheartening.
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And as someone who already knew who she was and binged-watched her recent videos like everyone else, I have my own thoughts as to what might be going on with her. I am aware that Marina was and might still be into the underground rave/party scene. There are tweets from her friends that confirm this and in her boyfriend tag video, the two share that they met at “Hakuna Matata," a name for underground raves in England that take place in a forest. We all know the raver druggie stereotype, so she may have very well abused drugs, as some people that know her have claimed. Which in turn may have triggered psychosis and caused her to develop schizophrenia or some other mental illness. Hence the change in quality of her videos and the help she receives from her parents.
I may be wrong, and if I am, it doesn't matter. You know why? Because Marina Joyce is allowed to keep certain aspects of her life private. Because she's a human being before she’s a YouTuber. I know lack of privacy is a burden that comes with fame, but fans need to remember that they're human like us, and we aren't entitled to know every single detail of their lives. The hate being directed at Marina now is disappointing and questionable since it's her fans and not her that started it. And yes she liked tweets that suggested she may be in danger, but you can tell clear as day that something is definitely off about her (the excessive blinking, the repetition of phrases, the lack of periods in her sentences, the wide eye stare, the hand movements.) And her family is handling it and she clearly doesn't want it publicized so deal with it, folks. May I also point out that Marina gets very emotional when speaking about her fans which lead me to believe she is aware that she’s going through something and that she's hurting. Channeling the spirit of Chris Crocker, leave Marina Joyce alone. PLEASE.
