Tenessee based 11-year-old Keaton Jones went viral this week after his mother posted a video of him crying on her personal Facebook page. In the video, Keaton is visibly upset and tells his mother that he’s tired of people bullying him.
“I’ve been bullied most of my life. It really hit drastically in third grade, and it’s been awful ever since then,” Keaton told CBS. “They call me mean, horrendous names, like all kinds of awful things. They say nobody likes me; they make fun of my nose, my scars, they’ve poured milk on me and poured ham down my clothes, thrown bread at me.”
Quickly gathering 22 million views, the Facebook video also attracted plenty of celebrities such as Eva Longoria, Demi Lovato and Justin Bieber who offered support to Keaton, either with words, messages, Skype chats or invitations to attend premieres and concerts. Selena recorded a video message exclusive to E! News, in which she thanks Keaton for taking a stand against bullying.
“Hey Keaton, it’s Selena Gomez. I saw your video, and it completely broke my heart, but I want to remind you how courageous that was. I thought what you said was real and genuine,” said Gomez. “I think you are a very brave young boy to go through that, and you don’t realize it yet, but you’re going to help a lot of other people who are feeling the same way. I’m encouraging you, and I’m cheering you on. Just know, L.A. loves you a lot.”
https://twitter.com/LWSGMedia/status/940427030578987009
Rumors spread concerning the family’s racist viewpoints after photos showing Keaton and his mother Kimberly smiling while holding a Confederate Flag got released along with a screenshot of Kimberly aiming at an NFL player for protesting racial inequality. Unverified reports say that Keaton got bullied because he had repeatedly used racial epithets against classmates, which his sister ardently denied.
A GoFundMe page which was launched to help finance Keaton’s “future” brought in almost $60K but had its donations disabled over an onslaught of backlash against his mother. In the blink of an eye, Keaton went from getting bullied by his classmates, to him and most of the celebrities who had supported him getting bullied by most of the Internet.
Selena fans everywhere are repeatedly posting pleas to delete her message for Keaton on the base of him being a racist, criticizing her for crying over him, saying she was “scammed” and “needs to do her research.” Some say no celebrity, including Gomez, have commented on the situation or retracted their messages of support.
Much of the evidence against Keaton’s family being racist has been debunked. The GoFundMe page reportedly wasn’t tied to any of the Jones family, although speculation that Keaton’s mother had set up a separate crowdfunding page herself still exists. The Instagram account which posted the racist comment was fake, along with 15 others, and Keaton’s mother has personally claimed she took a picture next to the flag in an “ironic” manner.
After abusive remarks were directed towards Keaton, the video was removed or made private. On Tuesday, with tears in her eyes to match her son’s, Kimberly protested her innocence on CBS News. “Yesterday he was a hero, today the world hates us,” she stated.
This article was inspired by VIVALA // Fans are dragging Selena Gomez for supporting bullied boy Keaton Jones