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Melissa Blake is a freelance writer covering relationships, disabilities and pop culture and has been featured on sites such as CNN and Cosmopolitan. She also has a popular blog called ‘So About What I Said,‘ where she gives inspiring personal insights into living with Freeman-Sheldon Syndrome, a genetic bone and muscular disorder that she has had since birth.

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As well as her specialist subjects Melissa often makes forays into politics too, giving her thoughts and opinions on a variety of issues.

Unfortunately, while her opinions are just as valid as anyone else’s, some people decided to cruelly make fun of her disability after she wrote an op-ed about the president.

Sadly, Melissa has had to endure much of this kind of abuse throughout her career – some people are simply assholes.

Despite the hurtful comments though, she refuses to let the cowardly bullies – hiding behind their fake names and profile pics – get her down. Her response to the latest round of ‘trollgate’ was a clear indication of that.

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While it’s easy to despair for the state of humanity and the sheer evil of these people, the horrible comments brought good people out in defense of Melissa and her work. This kind of support, love and basic humanity is what we need in these difficult times, where online bullying culture is getting louder and emboldened by certain high-profile people who encourage it.

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What do you think? Have you ever been bullied by trolls online? What can we do to ensure a more civil discourse on the internet? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!