We Should Not Blame Celebrities For Clapping Back At Trolls On Social Media

Wouldn't you?
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Nomzamo Mbatha is just one of a host of local media personalities who have recently come face to face with the trolls on social media.
Danny Moloshok / Reuters

Cyber bullying, trolling and dragging are terms that have become part and parcel of our daily cyber lives. Some of us have faced these hurtful and harmful actions.

Celebrities are perhaps the biggest victims though, as they are frequently the subjects of trolling, body-shaming and bullying.

Our local media personalities have not been spared, facing a barrage of ugly insults recently.

Just a week ago, actress Ntando Duma was asked by a Twitter user why her baby was fat while she's attractive herself.

Duma responded using a healthy dose of humour:

The tweep then started angling for sympathy:

To which people reacted:

Actress Amanda du-Pont's own body was the subject of some shaming on Twitter on Monday.

Du-Pont's photos from Sunday evening's SA Style Awards were met with nasty comments from Nesh:

Here's Amanda's response:

Actress and model Nomzamo Mbatha was also recently criticised for recycling some of her fashion -- and then for being classist in her response. This picture came with the caption "Don't look down":

A tweep then replied: "You're still wearing this dress from 2015. Nee gerl. Imagine I saw her with that same dress at some after party in Durban and on a few other occasions. Sies. That time it's latex."

Mbatha did not take this lying down: "Sis, I think we should stick to dancing [the troll is a choreographer] and leave the Customs Duty paying to mama. For the record, that one busted, dis' a new one."

She was then widely criticised, as some found her too harsh and snobbish.

To sign off from the subject, Mbatha tweeted: "Also, tweets must be taken into context. Now we can't address 'trolls' at the level they choose to jab? It's not fun anymore ke."

Quantico actress Pearl Thusi is another who has come face to face with the trolls.

In September she hit back at a Twitter user who suggested that she was not invited to Minnie Dlamini's wedding because she was a "dramatic".

More recently, Thusi was involved in another heated -- and more lengthy and personal -- spat on Twitter:

Some felt Thusi's behaviour insulting and outdated, with social media user Sheldon Cameron tweeting:

Thusi responded:

Can one ever be prepared?

Celebrities are only human, yet we seem shocked when they react to trolls like any "normal" person would.