Online abuse won’t stop me – councillor

A BIRMINGHAM councillor has been targeted by an online troll who branded her a “traitor” and threatened: “You’ll get what you deserve b****.”

Councillor Nicky Brennan this week revealed a screenshot of the abuse she received in an email, but insisted it would not stop her performing her duties.

There was no indication why the 28-year-old Labour councillor – newly-elected in Sparkhill ward earlier this year – was targeted.

The email read: “You are disgusting. Traitor to your race. You’ll get what you deserve b****.”

Cllr Brennan tweeted: “This type of abuse isn’t going to make me scared to do my job.

“It’s not going to make me stay at home. It’s not going to stop me speaking out about things.”

She was backed by colleagues including Council Leader Ian Ward.

He tweeted: “So sad that my colleague Nicky Brennan has to put up with this sort of disgusting abuse. In what world is this acceptable?”

It comes just months after Yardley MP Jess Phillips demanded a new law to unmask trolls after getting 600 rape threats in one night.

In May Cllr Brennan wrote a blog post telling of her struggles as a young mother.

She wrote: “I joined the Labour Party less than two years ago, the morning after the Brexit result and the whole experience has been a whirlwind.

“Politics has always been important to me but not the type of thing someone like me would ever put themselves forward to get involved in.

“My experiences as a young mum only pushed me harder to achieve and succeed and put a great amount of wisdom on my young shoulders through real-life situations.”