"Never be bullied into silence": Robin Williams' daughter returns to Twitter

Zelda Williams returned to social media after being harassed off the social media platform last month

Published September 2, 2014 6:40PM (EDT)

This Nov. 9, 2009 file photo shows Zelda Williams, left, with her father Robin Williams at the premiere of "Old Dogs," in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Katy Winn)
This Nov. 9, 2009 file photo shows Zelda Williams, left, with her father Robin Williams at the premiere of "Old Dogs," in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Katy Winn)

Zelda Williams, daughter of the late Robin Williams, returned to Twitter after being bullied off the micro-blogging site and Instagram last month.

Following the death of her father, she was repeatedly harassed by people sending her Photoshopped images of Robin Williams with bruises around his neck, and blaming her for her father's suicide.

Yesterday, Zelda Williams posted the below tweet:

[embedtweet id="506549627709960193"]

The quote is from Harvey Fierstein, who was her father's costar in "Mrs. Doubtfire." The full quote is below:

“Never be bullied into silence. Never allow yourself to be made a victim. Accept no one’s definition of your life; define yourself.”

While I respect the sentiment, and I'm glad that she has not been silenced, I hope Williams is not blaming herself for the nasty garbage spewed by those bullies. Nobody should have to live with that. Internet culture must change.

Since the harassment that drove Williams to deactivate, Twitter announced that it would "improve" its policies regarding harassment. Already it has taken steps to allow family members to request the removal of photos of deceased loved ones.


By Sarah Gray

Sarah Gray is an assistant editor at Salon, focusing on innovation. Follow @sarahhhgray or email sgray@salon.com.

MORE FROM Sarah Gray


Related Topics ------------------------------------------

Bullying Harassment Robin Williams Social Media Twitter Zelda Williams