Honey Boo Boo's Big Sister 'Pumpkin' Shut Down Her Instagram Trolls — But She Shouldn't Have To
She's clapping back against online hate.
Kristin Callahan/ACE Pictures/Shutterstock Alana Thompson, aka Honey Boo Boo, may have grown up a lot since her family's 2012 reality series Here Comes Honey Boo Boo, but one thing has remained the same: Her sister will fight in her corner no matter what.
Lauryn "Pumpkin" Shannon hit back at online trolls who mocked her teenage sister’s style and appearance.
Thompson is now 15 years old, and after a turbulent childhood both on and off-screen, it’s easy to understand why her sister, who is also her legal guardian, wants to shut down any criticism directed at the former child pageant queen.
Shannon, 21, is Mama June’s third daughter and Thompson’s half-sister. Shannon is also a mother to a 2-year-old daughter named Ella Grace, whom she shares with her husband Joshua Efird.
Just days ago, Shannon took to Instagram to respond to a meme that had been circulating of Thompson, seemingly to poke fun at Honey Boo Boo’s new style.
The image shows Thompson with eyelash extensions and acrylic nails and is captioned, “YALL LOOK AT HONEYBOOBOO.”
Shannon took issue with the image and some of the comments it generated, making sure to put trolls in their place with some photos and a caption of her own.
In her troll-stomping post, Shannon stated that Thompson is a teenager now and has every right to experiment with her look.
"Alana is 15 now she likes the long lashes & long nails but that doesn’t make her 'ghetto ,ratchet,poor, or grown,'" understandably protective big sister Shannon wrote.
“At 15, I’m glad the only things she worries about is her nails and lashes," she continued, "because as people most of her age she could definitely be involved in much worse.”
Shannon also praised her sister for maintaining high grades in school and not letting her complicated childhood stop her from treating others with kindness.
“She’s a beautiful soul who’s been through entirely too much for her age but still manages to give a person the shirt off her back when she may not have it to give,” Shannon stated.
Shannon also urged trolls to be more thoughtful before making comments about young people, who may be especially fragile or vulnerable.
“So next time before y’all go judging or name-calling," she wrote, "understand truly who Alana is and all the mean things you call her or the mean things you might say she’s still a child who has feelings.”
Mama June’s addiction issues have divided the family.
Thompson and her sisters haven’t had it easy over the last number of years, as they've struggled to support their mother through addiction issues.
In March 2021, June Thompson revealed she has been sober for over a year now, but was still working to mend the relationship with her children that decayed during years of drug abuse.
Mama June also spoke about spending nearly $1 million to fund her drug habit with her boyfriend Geno Doak.
In 2019, Mama June was arrested on drug possession charges just days after Thompson and Shannon staged a televised intervention to attempt to curb their mother’s drug habit.
However, even their strained relationship won’t stop Thompson from defending her mother, as she has previously called out trolls online who send hate her way about Mama June.
Shannon is now Thompson’s legal guardian.
Shannon stepped up to care for Thompson as Mama June’s addiction issues worsened.
The 21-year-old moved her sister into her home in 2019, but things haven’t been easy for the siblings since.
These two are regularly seen bickering on Mama June: Road to Redemption as Thompson struggles to make the transition from her mother’s home to her new life with her sister.
However, the sisters have still maintained a close bond through the adversity, as is clear from Shannon’s social media.
Thompson fortunately appears to still be as happy as ever.
Thompson has been known for her sassy clapbacks and being unapologetically herself since her days on Toddlers In Tiaras, and it looks like nothing has changed.
The teen regularly shares selfies, interacts with fans online, and even has her own beauty box line called Beauty By Boo Boo.
In a January 2021 Q&A on Instagram, she even told her followers that life “couldn’t be better,” proving that not even online hate and family issues can get her down.
Alice Kelly is a writer living in Brooklyn, New York. Catch her covering all things social justice, news, and entertainment.