Lindsey Shaw took to her Instagram stories on July 12, 2021, where she broke down in tears because of all the hate that she'd been getting in her inbox following her reaction to a recent TikTok video. 

Shaw was on the receiving end of the barrel after she seemingly mocked Black content creators on the popular video platform. 

How It All Began

The outrage began after she put up a reaction video on her TikTok handle featuring a current dance trend on TikTok. At the end of the original dance video, she stitched a clip of herself saying, 

Hey. Are you okay? What the [expletive] is that?

For that video alone, the public outrage might not really sound justified, as anyone can post their opinions on social media platforms.

However, prior to putting up the reaction video about the Black content creator, she had praised another group of people, who happened to be white, for the same routine. 

So recently, people called her out for using her voice to slam a harmless routine that people were enjoying.

The Public Outrage

Evidently, quite a few people were offended by her actions and resorted to giving her a piece of their minds. As a result, people took to the Pretty Little Liars actress's inbox with hateful messages.

Shaw was recently seen crying over the flood of hateful comments in her inbox, which was apparently too much for her to handle. Later on in the video, she announced that she was taking a break from social media. 

In the video, she affirmed that the intent behind her remark "wasn't that serious" and that she believed it was a "millennials and Gen Z thing." 

Shaw also clapped back at the people who she claimed had misinterpreted her intent. She added that the hate in her inbox was not okay. She said, 

I did not mean anything in any kind of way, I am learning every day, as I think everybody is. And this kind of hate just needs to evaporate from the planet no matter who it's directed towards.

She also struck back at viewers who implied that she was shedding crocodile tears and exaggerating her emotions to garner sympathy since the controversy had gotten out of hand. 

She claimed that her tears were real and that she was pouring her soul out, putting forth the argument that someone who knew her personally and knew what she stood for could easily tell that she meant no disrespect towards anyone. 

She Will Be Coming Back 

Further along in the series of clips, she apologized to everyone who was offended by her action in the initial TikTok clip. She continued to explain that she was going to keep learning for her own mental health. 

For that, she would take a step back from social media because she was not on the trending social platforms to offend or belittle anyone at all. 

Despite her teary eyes, she ended the series of videos on a positive note and said that she appreciated and loved her fans and followers. Close to closing her justification, she confirmed that she would be coming back to social media after a while. 

She was hopeful that everyone, herself included, would have a little more compassion and understanding by the time she got back.