I'd like to review what's happened from the POV of a reader:
- People in the SVU Twitter fandom made mean and hurtful comments about Kathy Stabler, some even celebrating her death. You were tagged in some of those posts, including one that's a popular Mean Girls meme.
- You felt hurt by these comments. You saw Kathy being disrespected and defiled, and you, the actor embodying that character for 12 years understandably found that hurtful.
- You made a choice to work through that hurt in a public forum and tag the White House Press Secretary regarding your blog post.
- You disappear after posting, and the narrative is completely lost and spun out of control. The creator of the meme (which you misrepresented as it included text about it being directed to Kathy Stabler that you chose to omit) is now getting death threats. Tweet after tweet seems to imply you, Isabel Gillies the person, received hate and vitriol. You don't step in to clarify.
- Your SVU colleagues retweet in what seems like a coordinated effort, amplifying your blog post exponentially. On Twitter there's a tangible sense of "pick up your pitchforks" against real, actual people. Not fictional people.
- You remain silent.
- Culminating with the White House Press Secretary weighing in, saying that a large part of the fandom has "poisonous venom pulsing through their veins." The. White. House. Press. Secretary.
- And yet, exactly one person in this situation has received a real, evidential death threat, and it's against the person who made the meme. You wrote about mob mentality against a fictional person and incited mob mentality against real people.
I'm glad you want to talk about being kind but boy did you blow it.
I'm totally confused. I opened this post expecting to read about hate mail and threats that Isabel received, and instead it's about the fictional character she portrays being bullied?? Talk about a bait and switch. I am sorry you were tagged in those posts, that was wrong. But like...you're a well-off white woman who got a paycheck for this acting gig, how badly do you expect us to feel for you for having for feelings hurt by a mean girls meme?
I've thought highly of you since the show premiered. You seemed sweet and intelligent, and portrayed Kathy Stabler perfectly. I found your return performance stunning--such a pitch perfect portrayal of pain. I've enjoyed your writing, particularly your piece about early menopause.
Now, I couldn't possibly think less of you. I believe you used your position of privilege and power to misrepresent the reality of what happened, and then brought in the SVU cast and the White House Press Secretary to come to your defense against a group without power (or the paycheck to match). You took this action against a fandom that you know very well is unique in how many of us are sexual assault survivors. We're survivors of abuses of power. In this situation, only one person had power, and that was you. And you used it to mispresent what actually happened and get a bunch of famous people, the SVU showrunner, and Jen Psaki to pile onto a large part of the fandom. When a real person, not a fictional character, received a death threat, not one of those people in power said a single word.
And once again, it cannot be minimized that you misrepresented what happened. 1. Very few people (if any) actually tagged you in these anti-Kathy posts. You happened to see them while scrolling. That doesn't make them ok but it's an important differentiation you chose not to make. 2. You chose to edit the meme so that it excluded the fact that it was explicitly directed to Kathy, instead implying it was directed at you personally. 3. You still haven't clarified any of these points.
I appreciate that it must feel awful to see tons of hate against a character you embodied for so long and I feel badly this caused you pain. I understand that threats and violence against celebrities are a real thing that can't be minimized, and the fandom needs to be more mindful of choosing our words and images in relation to this. But to see a wealthy white woman claim to be "attacked" in a way that is patently false and invite a whole bunch of people in power (including the WH Press Secretary which I will literally never get past) to pile on a fandom is disgusting, and then to disappear from the conversation, is absolutely appalling.
Please use your power to help heal a community now in deep pain. There were over 100 of us on a voice chat last night for hours because so many of us were hurting and feeling the repercussions of your abuse of power...something deeply triggering for a large portion of this fandom. Where is your T.H.I.N.K. about that?
p.s. "Good morning to absolutely everyone except Kathy Stabler’s ghost." is legitimately funny.
I kept waiting to reply, thinking surely you would condemn the death threats that were sent to fans as a result of your blog, and make sure your followers understood no one threatened you personally...where is it? You threw a molotov cocktail in the fandom and then peaced out? What is wrong with you?
I couldn’t care less about your CHARACTER, but how sad that you, the person behind her, had to feel pain. My oldest is 14, a child, she sings and has music out and my God she’s good , yet the haters still come out- adult haters come after a CHILD. Jealousy? Underwear too tight? Hangry? Who the f knows, but it’s crazy, and we ignore them. Glad you rose above too
I am so sorry how violent some of the comment has been towards you however please do not take personally all the memes and jokes on Kathy. I am here speaking as an avid fan of the love story of elliot and Olivia and do I feel some resentment towards Kathy? Yes. Did I like some of the tweets hating on Kathy? Yes I did. But please believe me when I say that this has nothing to do with you you as an actor or as a person. The way you portrayed Kathy was just incredible and amazingly done. We do separate you and your character. But now that that the content of the letter has been released we feel a certain way about Kathy.
Girl this is why I can’t stand white people especially Karen’s. Girl.. because you were tweeted some hateful tweets ABOUT A FUCKING FICTIONAL CHARACTER.. it’s okay for you to @ a fucking press secretory of the USA? You know how dumb that makes you look? Sorry if that hurt you lil feelings. Show every tweet that was attacking you personally and not your fic. character? Do you know bc of this real humans who just tweeting their feelings about a fic character now getting death threats and so much hateful tweets? IN REAL FUCKING LIFE? did anybody send you a mail or come to your house to insult you? Did anybody stop you on the street to insult you? Did you actually fucking T.H.I.N.K you’re not special nor your character to get hateful tweets bc plenty others have gotten it and will continue to do so but not one actor went to @ a fucking press sec. ? Bc of this.. you actually invited a bunch of people who you don’t actually know to actually hate you not the character but you yourself. Instead of telling people who have freedom of fucking speech to take down a notch how about you take some humor classes since it looks like now you might have some time since your character is dead. How about instead of pointing fingers and your angers at those people who you say you don’t know.. how about you tell the real issue you angry with? And that is they killed off your character and you’re salty about it. Your character was barley even on svu to say I’m too connected with the character. I can count on my hand throughout the 12 seasons how many episodes you’re on. Even if you do, it ain’t more than 2- 5 min tops. In fact you should have been proud.. people wouldn’t have cared for your character if you didn’t play a good job on it. This should have meant you did your job. The people you just gaslighted have gotten death threats from people they don’t know or might not have money to protect themselves if creeps hack their account and have their address but you will never have an acting gig ever again. Your character is annoying just like you. Your character through out the season only cares about her and you seem to be that kind of a person. It’s sad actually. Have a good day.
Ma'am. You played a supporting character on a TV show. I'm sure that you were aware of the batshit crazies on Twitter long before you trended. If you have a problem, don't take it out on the fans. Take it out on the show's writers. They didn't have to bring Kathy back and blow her up.
I stopped watching years ago. But was excited for Elliot's return. But, this "in your feelings" mess right here is why I'll stop watching again.
I've thought since the beginning that if Elliott was going to be married to someone, I'm glad it was you. I also have a hard time believing made-up characters deserve to be treated in the vein yours has been. People need to get a real life and leave the fantasy one go if this is how they are going to go about it. Thank you for your well written and thought provoking post.
I don't understand why people who have basically nothing good to say still get people's attention on social media. I am a huge SVU fan and I always loved the character of Kathy stabler. You, Isabel are fine actress and I hope to see you on other things soon. Thank you.
I'm so sorry you felt that way but clearly it wasn't directed toward Isabel the actress but the fictional character that doesn't exist, Kathy stabler. Sometimes it's good to separate the actress form the character and I think you also need to do that. The words were towards a fictional character that doesn't have feelings. While your feelings are valid, I think fans making jokes and memes about a situation that writers obviously wrote it to make fans start a RIOT (just in Chris Meloni words) and have a reaction to that. It was not towards you personally and just know that after you wrote this, some of the fans who tweeted those jokes are receiving death threats. If we're going to think, then you should too.
Whatever my personal feelings on the character you played, I can seperate you from her and rationalize that you are a human being and a kind, loving, giving, empathic, beautiful soul. You absolutely do not deserve this! Anyone with a brain should just know better! You did an amazing job playing Kathy, but YOU ARE NOT HER! YOU ARE THE EXTRAORDINARY ISABEL GILLIES AND YOU DESERVE NOTHING BUT GOOD THINGS!
I loved your character and cried when she got blown up. "You can't kill Kathy Stabler!" I shouted at the TV. It didn't listen. I'm sorry people are making stupid comments but that's the world we live in. I get them, too. Be strong (as I know you will).
lmaooooo I just saw someone use the Mean Girls meme for one of the characters in The Last of Us. What do you T.H.I.N.K. Izzy? Should we get the White House on the line?
I just remembered this happened and seriously laughed out loud. One of the most epic examples of rich white woman tears of all time. Way to lose the goodwill of your entire fanbase.
I'd like to review what's happened from the POV of a reader:
- People in the SVU Twitter fandom made mean and hurtful comments about Kathy Stabler, some even celebrating her death. You were tagged in some of those posts, including one that's a popular Mean Girls meme.
- You felt hurt by these comments. You saw Kathy being disrespected and defiled, and you, the actor embodying that character for 12 years understandably found that hurtful.
- You made a choice to work through that hurt in a public forum and tag the White House Press Secretary regarding your blog post.
- You disappear after posting, and the narrative is completely lost and spun out of control. The creator of the meme (which you misrepresented as it included text about it being directed to Kathy Stabler that you chose to omit) is now getting death threats. Tweet after tweet seems to imply you, Isabel Gillies the person, received hate and vitriol. You don't step in to clarify.
- Your SVU colleagues retweet in what seems like a coordinated effort, amplifying your blog post exponentially. On Twitter there's a tangible sense of "pick up your pitchforks" against real, actual people. Not fictional people.
- You remain silent.
- Culminating with the White House Press Secretary weighing in, saying that a large part of the fandom has "poisonous venom pulsing through their veins." The. White. House. Press. Secretary.
- And yet, exactly one person in this situation has received a real, evidential death threat, and it's against the person who made the meme. You wrote about mob mentality against a fictional person and incited mob mentality against real people.
I'm glad you want to talk about being kind but boy did you blow it.
I'm totally confused. I opened this post expecting to read about hate mail and threats that Isabel received, and instead it's about the fictional character she portrays being bullied?? Talk about a bait and switch. I am sorry you were tagged in those posts, that was wrong. But like...you're a well-off white woman who got a paycheck for this acting gig, how badly do you expect us to feel for you for having for feelings hurt by a mean girls meme?
I've thought highly of you since the show premiered. You seemed sweet and intelligent, and portrayed Kathy Stabler perfectly. I found your return performance stunning--such a pitch perfect portrayal of pain. I've enjoyed your writing, particularly your piece about early menopause.
Now, I couldn't possibly think less of you. I believe you used your position of privilege and power to misrepresent the reality of what happened, and then brought in the SVU cast and the White House Press Secretary to come to your defense against a group without power (or the paycheck to match). You took this action against a fandom that you know very well is unique in how many of us are sexual assault survivors. We're survivors of abuses of power. In this situation, only one person had power, and that was you. And you used it to mispresent what actually happened and get a bunch of famous people, the SVU showrunner, and Jen Psaki to pile onto a large part of the fandom. When a real person, not a fictional character, received a death threat, not one of those people in power said a single word.
And once again, it cannot be minimized that you misrepresented what happened. 1. Very few people (if any) actually tagged you in these anti-Kathy posts. You happened to see them while scrolling. That doesn't make them ok but it's an important differentiation you chose not to make. 2. You chose to edit the meme so that it excluded the fact that it was explicitly directed to Kathy, instead implying it was directed at you personally. 3. You still haven't clarified any of these points.
I appreciate that it must feel awful to see tons of hate against a character you embodied for so long and I feel badly this caused you pain. I understand that threats and violence against celebrities are a real thing that can't be minimized, and the fandom needs to be more mindful of choosing our words and images in relation to this. But to see a wealthy white woman claim to be "attacked" in a way that is patently false and invite a whole bunch of people in power (including the WH Press Secretary which I will literally never get past) to pile on a fandom is disgusting, and then to disappear from the conversation, is absolutely appalling.
Please use your power to help heal a community now in deep pain. There were over 100 of us on a voice chat last night for hours because so many of us were hurting and feeling the repercussions of your abuse of power...something deeply triggering for a large portion of this fandom. Where is your T.H.I.N.K. about that?
p.s. "Good morning to absolutely everyone except Kathy Stabler’s ghost." is legitimately funny.
these weren't personal attacks because Kathy is not a person. get it together.
I kept waiting to reply, thinking surely you would condemn the death threats that were sent to fans as a result of your blog, and make sure your followers understood no one threatened you personally...where is it? You threw a molotov cocktail in the fandom and then peaced out? What is wrong with you?
I couldn’t care less about your CHARACTER, but how sad that you, the person behind her, had to feel pain. My oldest is 14, a child, she sings and has music out and my God she’s good , yet the haters still come out- adult haters come after a CHILD. Jealousy? Underwear too tight? Hangry? Who the f knows, but it’s crazy, and we ignore them. Glad you rose above too
I am so sorry how violent some of the comment has been towards you however please do not take personally all the memes and jokes on Kathy. I am here speaking as an avid fan of the love story of elliot and Olivia and do I feel some resentment towards Kathy? Yes. Did I like some of the tweets hating on Kathy? Yes I did. But please believe me when I say that this has nothing to do with you you as an actor or as a person. The way you portrayed Kathy was just incredible and amazingly done. We do separate you and your character. But now that that the content of the letter has been released we feel a certain way about Kathy.
Girl this is why I can’t stand white people especially Karen’s. Girl.. because you were tweeted some hateful tweets ABOUT A FUCKING FICTIONAL CHARACTER.. it’s okay for you to @ a fucking press secretory of the USA? You know how dumb that makes you look? Sorry if that hurt you lil feelings. Show every tweet that was attacking you personally and not your fic. character? Do you know bc of this real humans who just tweeting their feelings about a fic character now getting death threats and so much hateful tweets? IN REAL FUCKING LIFE? did anybody send you a mail or come to your house to insult you? Did anybody stop you on the street to insult you? Did you actually fucking T.H.I.N.K you’re not special nor your character to get hateful tweets bc plenty others have gotten it and will continue to do so but not one actor went to @ a fucking press sec. ? Bc of this.. you actually invited a bunch of people who you don’t actually know to actually hate you not the character but you yourself. Instead of telling people who have freedom of fucking speech to take down a notch how about you take some humor classes since it looks like now you might have some time since your character is dead. How about instead of pointing fingers and your angers at those people who you say you don’t know.. how about you tell the real issue you angry with? And that is they killed off your character and you’re salty about it. Your character was barley even on svu to say I’m too connected with the character. I can count on my hand throughout the 12 seasons how many episodes you’re on. Even if you do, it ain’t more than 2- 5 min tops. In fact you should have been proud.. people wouldn’t have cared for your character if you didn’t play a good job on it. This should have meant you did your job. The people you just gaslighted have gotten death threats from people they don’t know or might not have money to protect themselves if creeps hack their account and have their address but you will never have an acting gig ever again. Your character is annoying just like you. Your character through out the season only cares about her and you seem to be that kind of a person. It’s sad actually. Have a good day.
Ma'am. You played a supporting character on a TV show. I'm sure that you were aware of the batshit crazies on Twitter long before you trended. If you have a problem, don't take it out on the fans. Take it out on the show's writers. They didn't have to bring Kathy back and blow her up.
I stopped watching years ago. But was excited for Elliot's return. But, this "in your feelings" mess right here is why I'll stop watching again.
I've thought since the beginning that if Elliott was going to be married to someone, I'm glad it was you. I also have a hard time believing made-up characters deserve to be treated in the vein yours has been. People need to get a real life and leave the fantasy one go if this is how they are going to go about it. Thank you for your well written and thought provoking post.
I don't understand why people who have basically nothing good to say still get people's attention on social media. I am a huge SVU fan and I always loved the character of Kathy stabler. You, Isabel are fine actress and I hope to see you on other things soon. Thank you.
I'm so sorry you felt that way but clearly it wasn't directed toward Isabel the actress but the fictional character that doesn't exist, Kathy stabler. Sometimes it's good to separate the actress form the character and I think you also need to do that. The words were towards a fictional character that doesn't have feelings. While your feelings are valid, I think fans making jokes and memes about a situation that writers obviously wrote it to make fans start a RIOT (just in Chris Meloni words) and have a reaction to that. It was not towards you personally and just know that after you wrote this, some of the fans who tweeted those jokes are receiving death threats. If we're going to think, then you should too.
Whatever my personal feelings on the character you played, I can seperate you from her and rationalize that you are a human being and a kind, loving, giving, empathic, beautiful soul. You absolutely do not deserve this! Anyone with a brain should just know better! You did an amazing job playing Kathy, but YOU ARE NOT HER! YOU ARE THE EXTRAORDINARY ISABEL GILLIES AND YOU DESERVE NOTHING BUT GOOD THINGS!
I loved your character and cried when she got blown up. "You can't kill Kathy Stabler!" I shouted at the TV. It didn't listen. I'm sorry people are making stupid comments but that's the world we live in. I get them, too. Be strong (as I know you will).
lmaooooo I just saw someone use the Mean Girls meme for one of the characters in The Last of Us. What do you T.H.I.N.K. Izzy? Should we get the White House on the line?
I just remembered this happened and seriously laughed out loud. One of the most epic examples of rich white woman tears of all time. Way to lose the goodwill of your entire fanbase.