They say nothing posted is safe on the internet — and when it comes to cyberbullying, sadly, it couldn't be truer.
We here at Little Things know firsthand how cruel the internet can be. People who are usually not comfortable in their own skin hide behind their computer screens to try and bring that own pain onto others. It's an epidemic and a true disgrace. We've seen moms bully other parents' baby photos online and people stealing strangers' photos to mock them in cruel memes. Luckily, some victims can find a silver lining, like one Irish teenager who got revenge by revealing a slimmer physique after bullies mocked his weight, or find the courage to face their critics like Ashley VanPevenage did.
Ashley is a 20-year-old student at Washington State University and an aspiring makeup artist. As you can see by the photos below, she's really talented…so talented, in fact, that some people couldn't even believe a before-and-after photo she posted of herself covering up her bad acne. After posting the side-by-side photo to Instagram, a random Twitter user posted the photo with the caption "I don’t understand how people can do this and I can’t figure out how to conceal a single pimple on my face.” Although it probably wasn't meant to be extremely malicious, the post quickly turned into a viral meme, with thousands of Twitter accounts retweeting the photo.
From there, it only got uglier. Ashley was heartbroken to see her face blasted all over the internet accompanied with cruel comments, yet how she reacted proves she's not just talented, but a true inspiration for women everywhere.
Twenty-year-old Washington State University student Ashley VanPevenage has posted a video on YouTube responding to a before and after photo of herself that went viral for all the wrong reasons.
Ashley works as a makeup artist and runs the instagram page MakeupByDreigh, where she posted these side-by-side photos of her work covering up her own blemishes.
Shortly after, the photo was reposted to Twitter by a Texas State University student with the caption "I don’t understand how people can do this and I can’t figure out how to conceal a single pimple on my face.”
The photo and caption were quickly stolen by Twitter account @SoDamnTrue, which has more than 5 million followers, and reposted thousands of times from there.
Twitter user @H_MENACE then took it in a more malicious direction, posting the photo with the caption below.
Ashley was unsurprisingly very hurt by the negative, cruel comments and unwanted viral fame. However, her response in the video below is inspiring and shows she's truly beautiful inside and out.
If there's a silver-lining in Ashley's unwanted viral fame, it has to be that she's getting recognized for her amazing makeup skills. Check out her account for some awesome Halloween inspiration like this ice queen design.
Please SHARE this post on your Facebook page if you love how this makeup artist stood up against her cyberbullies!
