Lead singer of the rapidly-shot-to-fame band CHVRCHES, Lauren Mayberry has today posted a powerful, incredibly wrenching op ed in The Guardian, sparked unfortunately by the horrific torrent of sexism and misogyny she endures daily online.
Mayberry was inspired to write the piece after posting this on CHVRCHES facebook page, only to be met with thousands of awful comments that mimicked the abuse they aimed to so discourage:
Lauren Mayberry starts her article by saying, “I am in a band that was born on the internet.” She continues by describing verbatim some of the abusive comments she received on the post, and laments on the kind of attitude that is so rampant online: “What I do not accept, however, is that it is all right for people to
make comments ranging from “a bit sexist but generally harmless” to
openly sexually aggressive. That it is something that “just happens”. Is
the casual objectification of women so commonplace that we should all
just suck it up, roll over and accept defeat? I hope not.
Objectification, whatever its form, is not something anyone should have
to “just deal with”.
Mayberry goes on to describe that, as you may not expect, she actively reads every comment and message the band’s Facebook page receives, and that obviously it isn’t always easy: “I am embarrassed to admit that I have had more than one prolonged toilet
cry and a “Come on, get a hold of yourself, you got this” conversation
with myself in a bathroom mirror when particularly exasperated and tired
out. But then, after all the sniffling had ceased, I asked myself: why
should I cry about this? Why should I feel violated, uncomfortable and
demeaned? Why should we all keep quiet?”
Mayberry concludes her piece optimistically, someone give this woman a medal:
“I am not a martyr, nor am I attempting to change the world in any revolutionary way. I am only in a band, not one of the many wonderful people in organisations striving for change. My involvement in this discussion is not motivated by a self-righteous or self-pitying urge. My hopes are that if anything good comes out of this, it will start a conversation, or continue the conversation which is already happening, encouraging others to reject an acceptance of the status quo, and that our band can continue to do what we are doing in our own way and on our own terms.”
Via The Guardian.
