Candace Cameron Bure made a controversial comment during Wednesday's taping of The View, in which she compared Internet trolling to rape.
The comment came during the Hot Topics discussion about Lena Dunham, who recently revealed that she will no longer control her Twitter after she posted a picture of herself wearing her boyfriend's underwear. The responses were so harsh that the Girls star called them "verbal violence."
Moderator Whoopi Goldberg didn't agree or disagree with Dunham's assessment, but she did acknowledge that people should know what they're up against on the Internet in this day and age. "The minute you put yourself out there in someone's underwear, you can't be surprised," she said.
Co-host Raven-Symoné agreed, but also saw Dunham's side, saying, "They come hard at people."
But it was Bure who felt the strongest about it, saying the attacks she has faced has been even worse since joining The View.
"I've never been more verbally abused in my life than on Twitter, and specifically in the last few months, having come on this show," said Bure, the conservative voice of the show. "A lot of people don't agree with me. That's fine; don't agree with me. But you don't have to verbally abuse me and rape me."
"That's what they do to me on Twitter."
No one acknowledged Bure's rape mention. Instead, Paula Faris also chimed in about her own experiences with trolling on social media. What bothers her the most, she said, was that the trolls hide behind their anonymous handles.
"If you're going to dish it out I want to see what you look like," Faris said.
Bure first addressed those who disagreed with her the night before her first day as a panelist. She posted a lengthy message on Facebook that asked for her fans' prayers.
"Please encourage me if you watch the show. Please tag The View on your social media outlets if you have anything kind to say about me or my viewpoint," she wrote. "The majority of the feedback I get from The View audience is from liberals (whom I love) but are mean, hateful and downright nasty toward me. It's incredibly disheartening to read."
She implored friends and followers to "speak up" on social media if agreed with her, but the haters apparently are outweighing he supporters.