The Britney Spears fan behind a viral 2007 video, in which they tearfully begged the media to stop hounding Britney Spears, has spoken out after the release of a new documentary about the pop star.
Chris Crocker, who received a torrent of abuse from trolls after the video went viral, hit back at the people who targeted the internet star in a statement posted to Twitter and Instagram.
“Me saying leave Britney alone was never really the issue,” Crocker said. “Michael Moore said it and no one batted an eyelash."
Crocker, now an adult entertainer, blogger and singer, believes the reason the video wasn’t taken seriously was because “I was a gender-bending teenager and the reaction to me was transphobic”.
“When I said it, I had to fear for my life,” the 33-year-old said. “Death threats were sent to my grandmother's house. I was already living in the south as a gender-bending teenager with no money or ways of feeling protected.”
Crocker claimed they also received hate from fellow LGBT people, including physical attacks at gay bars and in the streets.
“LGBT people [were] embarrassed of me because of the way the media made fun of me,” they said. “Which made them feel I gave them a bad name.”
Crocker concluded: “I hope not only Britney gets the freedom she deserves but that Femme queer people are not tortured in the media when showcasing humanity.”
Read more: How to watch Framing Britney Spears
Read more: People spent years taking photos of Britney. But did they actually look?
Framing Britney Spears analyses the intense media scrutiny towards the pop star during 2007 and 2008, when she suffered a series of mental health breakdowns and was placed under a legal conservatorship.
It also investigates the conservatorship itself, which is the subject of an ongoing court battle between Spears and her father, Jamie Spears, over the control of her estate.
Since the documentary aired, a number of stars have spoken out in support of Spears, while other public figures have been criticised for their past treatment of her.
It is available now on Hulu in the US, and expected to be released in the UK this spring.
