Teen turns tables on bullies by posing with graffiti meant to shame her
Someone spray painted the words "Carleigh's ass" on a cement barrier in Wall, New Jersey.
The words were meant to shame and hurt the 14-year-old girl living in the small town.
But the teen turned the tables on the bullies by taking a photo with the graffiti and putting it up on Instagram.
She told Today.com: "I wanted to show whoever decided to write that that I was stronger than that. It didn't impact me at all. I didn't put my head down, I didn't cry about it. I didn't give the kids the power they wanted."
Her mother, Mrs Daryl Lynn O'Connell, put the photo up on Facebook along with a caption explaining the significance of the picture.
She wrote: "She (Carleigh) decided that she was going to be stronger than hurtful words on the concrete and that she was going to be proud of her figure."
"She also told me that she feels complete sympathy for the teenagers across the country who face this every day. She understands and wants all of them to find strength inside to rise above the nastiness and be empowered by who you are, how you are made and what is in your heart."
Mrs Daryl Lynn O'Connell (first from left) is extremely proud of her daughter, Carleigh (third from left).
Mrs O'Connell also wrote about how proud she was of her daughter.
"So for me as the mom....I type this with tears in my eyes. Not tears of sadness or anger for I will never give anyone that is mean that much power. Tears of joy knowing that my daughter can face negativity with a smile and sense of humour," she wrote.
"Words can hurt but how you handle the words makes all the difference," she added.
Source: Today.com, Facebook/daryl.l.oconnell, NewJersey101.5
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