OPINION: Online trolls and bullies will not quieten my voice - Sophie Mei Lan

So, you may question why someone who gets so much hatred online stays working online as a content creator and social media coach?

It’s much more than an issue of trolling, this is an issue of women’s rights.

“Why do you put yourself out there, though?” “Why don’t you just not go online?” “Why don’t you just keep quiet?” I get asked this by people trying to be supportive and I too have asked myself these questions. But I have realised that these are echoes of our murky history of denying a range of women’s voices: “Why don’t you just cover up?” “You’re asking for it.” “Just keep quiet and be a good girl.”

I have often wanted to hide away or wished I could just remain quiet online and in the media so that people don’t fill my inbox with hatred. But my passion and fire for misfits, like me, to be seen and accepted is much greater than my fears.

So, while this weekend I cried myself to sleep with yet another threat because sadly some people struggling in lockdown choose to spend their time harbouring hatred (rather than making positive choices like learning a skill as I am doing at the moment), I woke up re-energised the next day with a pity for the bullies but with a purpose-filled focus to not give into them or anyone who wants expressive women to hide away or to go offline.

When people see women in the media, politics, online or on the street, they are often subject to vile language and abuse for simply having a voice or expressing themselves whether this be through what they do, what they say or how they look.

The abuse I and many other women receive is much more than “fair play” for working in the media, but it is deeply ingrained misogynistic attitudes held by some men and even women.

Yes, sometimes I make my own choice to step away from social media as it is healthy for all of our minds to take a break, move and get fresh air. I will not be forced to disappear off any platform for simply being an expressive woman with a colourful life story. It is such bullying, abuse and views (said and unsaid) that push so many women and people who don’t fit the status quo to hide away. It is why so many voices are seldom-heard. I am not from a ‘hard-to-reach’ community, I am from an underrepresented and often shunned community.

If I make people uncomfortable because I don’t fit their norms or standards, well, then that’s a good thing as they obviously need their minds opened, they need to be pushed out of their echo chambers. I am helping them by challenging them out of their comfort zone so they can experience the beauty of such diverse voices. I will not be silent. In the words of Helen Reddy: “I am Woman. Hear Me Roar.” You can chat to Sophie Mei Lan positively on social media @mamameiblog, read her blogs at mamamei.co.uk and listen to her new Recovery Road podcast on Apple, Spotify and all podcast providers.