Dancer Pasha Kovalev is backing the Mirror’s Stop Online Hate campaign as he fears trolls targeting pregnant wife Rachel Riley could harm their second child.
Countdown star Rachel, 35, has suffered vile anti-Semitic abuse and told the Mirror this week how trolls have “become part of my daily life”.
Yesterday her name was a trending topic on Twitter, swamped with negative messages.
She has previously told how she became “very stressed and upset” over such abuse while pregnant with first child Maven, now 16 months, adding: “My baby stopped wriggling for a couple of days.”
At the time she blocked trolls, deciding engaging online was “not worth the hormones”.
But now, as the couple expect their second baby in autumn, Pasha is calling out the “acidity” of social media platforms as he fears the same happening again.
The ex-Strictly Come Dancing pro, 41, says: “I definitely can see how it stresses her. The smallest stress affects how the baby’s development is going.”
He says hate flourishes online “because of the lesser responsibility and less accountability”.
He adds: “If you come up to someone on the street and tell them something like that, you’re probably going to get some sort of repercussion.
"You’d be held accountable for your actions.
“Online there’s a limited amount of repercussion, and it opens a floodgate. It should be stopped.”
He vowed to “support the people around me in this position and hope and try to build steps towards getting it safer out there online
for everyone”.
Pasha raised over £10,000 for the theatre industry with his Rise Up With Arts event last month, featuring stars including Queen’s Brian May, after the pandemic forced him to cancel live dates.
*Exclusive bonus streams from the Rise Up With Arts event will be available from May 14-16 at riseupwitharts.com, featuring Brian May, Strictly’s Kevin Clifton and Duncan James from Blue.
If you're struggling and need to talk, the Samaritans operates a free helpline open 24/7 on 116 123. Alternatively, you can email Jo@samaritans.org if you'd prefer to write down how you feel. You are not alone.
