Miranda Lambert Slams Internet Trolls

The 2016 CMAs were good to Miranda Lambert: She delivered a powerhouse performance of her hit, "Vice," donned a showstopper of a black dress, and had a fun night out with her boyfriend, Anderson East. That is, until she Instagrammed a photo of herself and her beau at the event and was met with some nasty comments from internet trolls. In a new Insta post on Thursday night, Lambert slammed the haters in a lengthy and heartfelt caption.

"Last night I was all dolled up and 'out on the town' with my sweet man at the CMA awards in Nashville," she wrote. "I was excited about the night and posted a picture. Just now when I looked I realized so many comments were judgmental and negative. Cowardly people hiding behind a keyboard or a cell phone writing their useless comments about our eyes and clothes and body language.

"What a bunch of bull sh*t," she continued. "Thank y'all for reminding me why I read books, write songs, and spend most of my time with animals and people I trust and love."

Lambert ended the comment with a thought-provoking quote from Maya Angelou about the power of hateful words (a much more eloquent version of telling everyone to STFU).

While Lambert had to know that taking a stand would, in some essence, feed into the trolls' behavior (and at least make headlines and give the situation press), she shouldn't have to be silent. In fact, all the power to her for taking a stand and setting an example for others to do the same. No one should have to suffer in silence, and cyberbullies need to know how their words affect people — real live people on the other side of that screen.

There isn't some magic celebrity sheen that washes over famous people and makes them immune to hateful comments. In fact, being in the public eye makes them more vulnerable to anonymous hate. And while having public social media accounts leaves them open to receiving unfiltered comments from the general public (and therefore meaning they might be "used" to such commentary), it doesn't mean they have to tolerate it.

Drawing attention to internet trolls like Lambert did was intended to create awareness and start a conversation. Maybe next time Lambert posts a picture (a particularly sweet one at that), hopefully some commenters will pause and think before tossing a nasty judgment and hurtful words out into the void. It might not stop everyone — and it probably won't — but if her message can reach just a few would-be trolls and make them double-think, hey: It's a start.