A two-year-old video of a teenage girl being fat shamed at her church has gone viral once again, after being re-posted on Reddit.
In June of 2019, a then 19-year-old Jenna Munger posted a video on Twitter she had recorded of Bonnie Sue Bihary, a delegate for the North Carolina Conference of the United Methodist Church at the time, following her into the bathroom of the Swansboro United Methodist Church, telling her the jean shorts she had on were not appropriate.
Bihary then informed Munger of another "chubby girl" at the church wearing a dress of a more suitable length.
When Munger asked Bihary if she was calling her fat, Bihary's response was:
"Oh, you don't think you are?"
This led to a very heated exchange between Bihary and Munger, with the latter quickly succumbing to tears, and saying she would never return to the church owing to Bihary's hurtful words.
The upsetting video resurfaced again on the Reddit page @r/PublicFreakout
Warning: NSFW Language.
from PublicFreakout
When the video was first published in 2019, Munger was met with endless support and love, while Bihary was condemned for her shocking and highly un-Christian behavior.
Two years later, Munger was met with an equal amount of support on Reddit, while Bihary received an equal amount of condemnation.
"Hearing the pain in that girls voice was heartbreaking. Regardless of anyone's weight, a scolding in a church bathroom doesn't sound like it would ever lead to a healthy discussion."- Eggsell.
"My heart broke for this poor girl. I grew up with a mom who told me my whole life I'd be so pretty if I lost weight. It causes issues, y'all".- reading_internets.
"When I start crying I hyperventilate and just can't speak. I'm amazed at how much she was able to speak up for herself..good for her..."-nanariv1
"The fact that she's in a position to influence and protect young girls is heartbreaking. Some people can't help but spread their misery to others."-HafWoods
"I honestly don't understand how anyone can hear someone in that state of crying and thinks it's ok. Genuinely felt sick from how you can hear how bad she was sobbing."- Slimesmore.
After becoming aware of all the support she received on Reddit after the video resurfaced, Munger took to Twitter to thank everyone for their words of love and encouragement, as well as give an update on her life.
Update 2 years laterpic.twitter.com/aGFgclz4Jd— Jenna \ud83e\udd8a (@Jenna \ud83e\udd8a) 1631120072
She also disclosed that while she has not been in contact with Bihary, who subsequently resigned from all her volunteer positions at the church following the video being published, Bihary had made several attempts to contact Munger and her family.
"As for Bonnie Sue, I really don't know what's going on in her life."
"I will say she has been trying to push my family's buttons and did try to get close with them and interact with them the past few years."
"But I think she's finally gotten it, that we don't want anything to do with her."
Munger also revealed she had alerted the Swansboro United Methodist Church that the video had become viral again, and reminded viewers that they were nothing but supportive at the time of the incident, and Bihary's behavior was not at all reflective of them.
"I did let the church know that there's a second wave of people coming through."
"I just wanted to forewarn them because if anyone's trying to reach out to them I promise they did everything that they could do during that situation and they were absolutely amazing."
As was the case on Reddit, Munger found herself flooded with messages of love and encouragement on Twitter, commending her for her strength and dignity in moving on from such a potentially traumatizing incident.
I\u2019m so happy to see that you are doing well! My heart just broke for you! Sending love!— KristenBach23 (@KristenBach23) 1631122658
The way you stood up for yourself! I would\u2019ve just cried in the corner and gone home at your age, but you stood up! Bravo to you!— Lauren Rhodes (@Lauren Rhodes) 1631122966
Hey Jenna,i just saw your video. I am glad to hear you are doing better and i am happy you stood up for yourself. You were so brave. Hope you have a great weekend. :)— Jannerk \ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\ud83c\udf08 (he/him/they) (@Jannerk \ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\ud83c\udf08 (he/him/they)) 1631126307
Yo, you're an inspiration!— Axel Foley (@Axel Foley) 1631127286
You\u2019re amazing. You showed such courage in standing up for yourself in the middle of an outrageous moment.— Dana Scott \ud83c\udf39 (@Dana Scott \ud83c\udf39) 1631127932
Unfortunately, in addition to the love and support Munger received, there were those who took her update as justification for sending abusive messages to the church, including death threats, resulting in Munger posting yet another video update.
An eye for an make the whole world go blindpic.twitter.com/mZdRrt5PU1— Jenna \ud83e\udd8a (@Jenna \ud83e\udd8a) 1631220287
Captioning the video "An eye for an eye make the whole world go blind", Munger emphasized that she does not tolerate abusive behavior of any kind.
Even at the time of the incident, Munger posted a video urging people to stop harassing Bihary, in spite of all the pain she caused her, making it clear that she forgave Bihary and love was the only cure for hate.
She also confessed to being in a heightened emotional state at the time of the incident, following news that her 16-year-old cousin had just had a seizure as a result of a brain aneurysm.
Munger did make it clear, however, that it was important to "hold people accountable" for abusive behavior, which is why she recorded and shared the video in the first place.
"I just want people to take away that I am OK, and that this situation happens every day and not a lot of people have a chance to record that."
Munger disclosed that she attended therapy following the incident, which she admitted was traumatic for her and her family, but doing so has helped her be in a much better place than she was two years ago.
