Monica Lewinsky has debuted a new anti-bullying PSA called "In Real Life" featuring actors re-enacting cyberbullying posts with actual passers-by responding to the harassment.
The hard-hitting video is the latest in a string of anti-bullying campaigns launched by Lewinsky, who is the self-proclaimed "patient zero" of cyberbullying, The Cut noted.
The "In Real Life" PSA plays out several scenarios in which actors harass their targets with hurtful comments such as "everyone hates you, you should hate yourself, too," and "homosexuality is a disease."
The actors continue to hurl verbal abuse at the targets until witnesses on the street step in and speak out against the slew of hurtful comments.
The video drives home the point that, when hiding behind the anonymity of a screen, people would write things they would never say to someone in real life.
This is what Lewinsky hoped to achieve with the video, she told People magazine.
"It's a stark and shocking mirror to people to rethink how we behave online versus the ways that we would behave in person."
Lewinsky explained that the actors had been hired to re-enact hateful posts made on social media, but the people who overheard the comments and stepped in to stand up for the those being bullied were not actors.
"They were not aware the actors were reading real social media posts," she told People. "Their reactions and actions were real. It was heartening to see real New Yorkers stand up for people."
Lewinsky has taken on the role of ambassador for anti-cyberbullying, something she has quite a bit of experience with as online users continue to mock her 20 years after her affair with President Clinton.
"The most damaging part is how incredibly isolating it can be," she told Glamour about cyberbullying.
She added that "there is a decency that wells up in most of us when we're face-to-face with someone while the anonymity of the Internet has made people feel free to be their worst selves."
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