[Fetch The Bolt Cutters]

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage...e-caption.html

SICK web trolls stole a picture of a young girl with Down’s Syndrome and posted it on Facebook with a caption saying "lose your virginity to a ******".

Tearful Heidi Crowter has only just been told about the sexual and derogatory comments being made about an innocent picture of her online.

The 16-year-old has been the target of several other sick pages on Facebook bearing her image.

The photos of Heidi, from Coventry, as a toddler had been stolen from a website for a parents’ support group.

Horrified mum Liz and husband Steve have been bombarding Facebook to take down the sites and so far only one has been removed.

Liz, 45, said the internet trolls behind the posts had been using images of her daughter for months and Facebook had made no direct contact with her to resolve the issue.

Heidi’s pictures were taken from a local support group website, which Liz ran for about five years.

She said pages carrying Heidi’s image are still active despite Liz reporting the problem TWO WEEKS ago.

She said: “It’s almost like Faceless rather than Facebook, we have been repeatedly trying to take these distressing sites down and I have not once had a direct response.

“These trolls are cowardly, nasty people who should be punished for the damage they are doing to people with their comments.

“They have no right to take Heidi’s image and use it alongside these cruel sites. If you look at the lad who made those comments about Fabrice Muamba online, he was taken to court.

“Heidi has told me she is very upset by the sites and she turns her head away when we have them on the computer screen.”

Liz said one image had been taken down but that another was still active.
In September, Liz found her daughter’s picture on a Facebook page which insulted people with Down’s Syndrome and other learning difficulties.

The mother-of-four contacted Facebook and West Midlands Police, who she said informed her it was not a matter for officers.

Over the weekend Liz was told by friends that Heidi’s picture had been put on a new page which insulted people with Down’s Syndrome.

Liz said: “In normal life, in reality if you like, we have never had anyone make any comments to us or insult Heidi.

“It’s only because these trolls can hide behind the internet that they do this kind of thing, but it’s just as bad as someone saying it in the street.

'Violated'
“I feel violated and violated on Heidi’s behalf. I’m disgusted that people can be so sick.

“It’s not just Heidi, it’s photos of other people’s children as well.”

Liz said Heidi was a “very independent young lady” who was studying for her GCSEs at a mainstream school and doing a hairdressing course.

“She’s funny, stubborn and very kind.

“We’re all very upset and it and they [her other children] see her as a lovely sibling that they want to protect and support.”

Facebook said that once images were reported using its online link, they were reviewed by its User Operations Team.

A spokesman said: “When people on Facebook do find themselves in a situation where they feel uncomfortable, we encourage them to use our reporting tools so the content or activity can be investigated.

“We also have a set of rules that set out how people are expected to behave - the Statement of Rights and Responsibilities.”

West Midlands Police confirmed it had received a complaint on September 17 but this was withdrawn after the photograph was removed from Facebook.

Officers who wanted to reassure the caller arranged to visit them on September 22 “to ensure no offences had been committed”, a spokesman said.

this is awful

[King Gizzard]

Bet it happens alot, it just so happens they were caught this time :/ they no know boundaries it's sick

[Fetch The Bolt Cutters]

[Mystic Mock]

That's vile, but they shouldn't let a few Internet Trolls upset them as there life is probably pathetic and boring and that's why they do sick stuff like this to get some sort of weird thrill out of it.

[Fetch The Bolt Cutters]

i just find it really upsetting that they discovered it

in an ideal world nobody would joke about such things, its bad enough that the meme exists in the first place but to find out about it like that must have been awful for them

[Ammi]

..it's is extremely upsetting Scott..but the fact is it happens all of the time....and I can't see it will ever be stopped..and tbh people say cruel things all of the time in real life..I mean they actually think they're funny...and now it seems to be the 'trend' on the internet...but as you say for the family seeing it ..for everyone to see..is awful..I don't think we'll ever see an end to this happening though...there are always going to be those type of people out there...and unfortunately..there are also going to be some which find it funny....(otherwise they wouldn't do it)

[Niall]

That's really horrible.

[King Gizzard]

Some of us even probably post pictures without knowing what the pictures origins are/if the person themselves know the picture is being used as a meme/if that person has an illness which is making them look the way they are. Granted not on the same scale as this one, but it probably happens alot

[Redway]

Vile.

[Jack_]

Now as you know I'm not one for complaining about 'sick' humour, or indeed attempting to ban it.

But I wouldn't even class this as a joke to be honest, and there's something about this which just doesn't feel right. There's plenty of these types of memes and pictures plastered all around Facebook and I think it's quite disgusting. Whilst it's amusing at the time, I think most people fail to realise they are actually images of real people, and essentially you are mocking them for how they look. Quite pathetic, really.

So yeah...I'm against people who complain about sick humour, but this is different. It's essentially the equivalent of picking somebody out in the street, gathering a crowd around them and pointing and laughing at them. It's not a joke...it's just large scale inadvertent bullying.

[joeysteele]

I cannot really add anymore to what everyone says, it is simply a vile and totally rotten thing to do.
These people really are the lowest of the low.

[Samuel.]

That's the nature of memes. I think it's a bit of an overreaction really. Yeah, I imagine it's awful for her, but there are literally thousands of memes just as bad if not worse. Not that that justifies this at all, but what do you expect from the internet? I wouldn't describe those using it as nasty or vile, the situation for the girl is, but those using it I can't imagine have any idea what damage they may have done, or even once thought about the girl in question; like all memes, it's treated as a harmless, throwaway joke that you barely even think about. Again, not saying that that should be the case, but it is. They're most likely desensitised by the internet, I think we all have been to some degree.

[hennessy]

Thank you Samuel. I was going to say the same thing.
This meme has been around for about 4 years and I imagine a lot of people laughed about it but condemn it in public.
Frankie Boyle, Jimmy Carr, Jerry Sadowitz etc have all been worse than this.
I'm sorry the girl was distraught but this will just add fuel to the fire for the people who made it and I know they're making more

[Marc]

Kids are idiots. They need something awful to happen to them to realise that life is a bitch

[Josy]

Thats sad.

It just shows though that all those people posting pics of themselves and their kids all over the internet where anyone can save them really don't know what they are going to end up being used for, I am of the opinion that if you don't want your pics misused then it's up to you to keep them private in the first place.

[arista]

Originally Posted by hennessy

Thank you Samuel. I was going to say the same thing.
This meme has been around for about 4 years and I imagine a lot of people laughed about it but condemn it in public.
Frankie Boyle, Jimmy Carr, Jerry Sadowitz etc have all been worse than this.
I'm sorry the girl was distraught but this will just add fuel to the fire for the people who made it and I know they're making more

Yes on TV , no less

[lostalex]

Oh my, her new hairstyle...and whatever magazine bought this story, did they really thing that haircut was the right way to go lol.

Now we know what Sharon Osbourne would look like with down's syndrome...

[Niamh.]

Originally Posted by Jack_

Now as you know I'm not one for complaining about 'sick' humour, or indeed attempting to ban it.

But I wouldn't even class this as a joke to be honest, and there's something about this which just doesn't feel right. There's plenty of these types of memes and pictures plastered all around Facebook and I think it's quite disgusting. Whilst it's amusing at the time, I think most people fail to realise they are actually images of real people, and essentially you are mocking them for how they look. Quite pathetic, really.

So yeah...I'm against people who complain about sick humour, but this is different. It's essentially the equivalent of picking somebody out in the street, gathering a crowd around them and pointing and laughing at them. It's not a joke...it's just large scale inadvertent bullying.

I do agree with you but I just wanted to ask how you think this and Frankie Boyles "jokes" about Harvey are any different. He was also mocking a disabled child.

[hennessy]

Jack
"So yeah...I'm against people who complain about sick humour, but this is different. It's essentially the equivalent of picking somebody out in the street, gathering a crowd around them and pointing and laughing at them. It's not a joke...it's just large scale inadvertent bullying.

How is it like this? It's been around for at least four years and only now she's aware.
It's more like people bitching about someone behind they're back without them knowing but finding out years after.
The Frankie Boyle joke was more akin to your analogy
But still it's not nice

[Z]

This is horrible. I agree with Josy though - if you put pictures up online, you should be mindful of the fact that anyone can use and abuse them. Doesn't make it any less horrible for the girl and it's not like they are to blame for other people being assholes, but there is definitely a lesson to be learned here.

I kind of feel like the honeymoon period of the internet is over - nowadays we're seeing more and more cases of criminal justice being brought to internet based crimes that, to be honest with you, I don't even think any of us really see as crimes just yet. We're so used to illegal downloading, uploading and sharing of all sorts of things that we don't see it as being as bad as other crimes. That whole anti piracy advert of "you wouldn't steal a car" always makes people laugh because 'you can't download a car, that's why' - but it was just one of the first messages that the internet is not the free for all playground that we all treat it as...

[hennessy]

This is a drop in the ocean to the stuff I've seen.
If you've been to sickipedia and laugh than maybe you're just as bad, I have and I am

[lostalex]

Originally Posted by hennessy

This is a drop in the ocean to the stuff I've seen.
If you've been to sickipedia and laugh than maybe you're just as bad, I have and I am

I agree, we've all laughed at these types of jokes, and i'd dare to suggest we've also all laughed at homophobic and racist and sexist jokes too.

I don't agree with humiliating people to the point of bullying, but in general we've all laughed at inappropriate jokes, so let's not get self-righteous. we're all guilty of this kind of humor.

[Livia]

I've said this before, but it's relevant here... The Internet is in its infancy and consequently it's like the Wild West, ie: lawless. People are free to do any sick and ridiculous thing they like. But it cannot always be like that. Eventually, it will have to be policed in some way because some people are twisted and not to be trusted. As a consequence of the actions of a few, everyone will have to suffer their liberties being infringed and lose the total freedom they now enjoy, for the greater good. Because some people are ar5eholes and cannot be trusted to act like a reasonable human. It's just the way it is.

[lostalex]

Originally Posted by Livia

I've said this before, but it's relevant here... The Internet is in its infancy and consequently it's like the Wild West, ie: lawless. People are free to do any sick and ridiculous thing they like. But it cannot always be like that. Eventually, it will have to be policed in some way because some people are twisted and not to be trusted. As a consequence of the actions of a few, everyone will have to suffer their liberties being infringed and lose the total freedom they now enjoy, for the greater good. Because some people are ar5eholes and cannot be trusted to act like a reasonable human. It's just the way it is.

and who is to judge and decide what is appropriate? lemmie guess, people that agree with YOUR world view i guess?

The internet needs a 1st amendment. Someone at the UN needs to make that happen. God save us from Livia's fascist view of how the internet SHOULD be.

Livia has been absolutely horrible to me, but i'd never say that she shouldn't have the right to say those things to me. I support free speech absolutely. If the undemocratic joke that is the EU ever get's it's hands on the internet, everyone should be scared. Thank God the internet has been mainly regulated by the US with an iron-clad free speech policy so far.

Europe(the EU) should not be allowed anywhere near this issue.

[Livia]

Originally Posted by lostalex

and who is to judge and decide what is appropriate? lemmie guess, people that agree with YOUR world view i guess?

The internet needs a 1st amendment. Someone at the UN needs to make that happen. God save us from Livia's fascist view of how the internet SHOULD be.

Personally, I don't want to have anything to do with it. Although, it will be someone like me I suppose, and by that I mean a qualified lawyer.

And I'd appreciate it if you would desist from referring to me as a fascist.