How do you respond to online trolls spewing hateful comments online?
Make them eat their words. Literally.
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That鈥檚 how one Brooklyn-based baker is hitting back at cyber trolls who post hurtful words online.
Kat Thek, the founder of , bakes cakes in her kitchen with the cruel comment printed on top in colourful writing and mails it to the online harasser of a customer鈥檚 choosing.
She came up with the idea after she stumbled across a particularly mean post on Dolly Parton鈥檚 Facebook page not too long ago. Thek told CTVNews.ca in a phone interview from Brooklyn, N.Y. on Monday that the commenter wrote 鈥淵our mama be (sic) so disappointed鈥� on the country music star鈥檚 profile.
The creative dessert-maker said she couldn鈥檛 believe anyone would have 鈥渂eef鈥� with the popular musician.
鈥淚t was so obviously incorrect. Dolly Parton is a 71-year-old millionaire with a theme park. I鈥檓 positive her mother would be super proud of her,鈥� Thek said with a laugh.
Thek said the insult was so absurd that she just had to put it on a cake. Once she did, she had a realization 鈥� why not mail the completed dessert to the Parton troll so they can see how ridiculous their comment really is? And thus, Troll Cakes was born.
鈥淚t鈥檚 just funny to see things that you wouldn鈥檛 ordinarily expect show up on a cake and then I realized it鈥檚 very funny to see a mean thing on a cake,鈥� Thek said.
Since launching the business a little more than three weeks ago. Thek, who also works as a copywriter, has come up with three options for customers looking to send cakes to online haters.
Buying a Troll Cake
鈥� The first option costs US$35 and involves the buyer sending Thek a screengrab of the online comment they wish to have printed on the cake and the address of the recipient.
鈥� With the second option, for $60, a customer can send Thek the mean comment and she鈥檒l track down a work or home address for the online troll and send the cake there.
鈥� The third, and perhaps the most hilarious option, is the 鈥淭iny Hands Special鈥� where customers can send Thek a Tweet or quote from U.S. President Donald Trump and she鈥檒l print it on a cake and mail it to the White House for $30.
鈥淲e have a troll in the White House,鈥� she explained. 鈥淲hatever your politics are, you can鈥檛 ignore that Trump says bizarre insults on Twitter.鈥�
Thek said she realized Trump appreciates cake after he once described a chocolate cake he ate as the 鈥渕ost beautiful鈥� during a televised interview in April.
The first option, where customers already have an address for her, is the most popular one.
鈥淚t鈥檚 usually somebody making fun of a friend or a family member who had a tantrum online, which I think is the funniest thing,鈥� she said.
Thek said she鈥檚 had a few dozen orders so far and plenty of interest. She said she鈥檚 been receiving messages asking her what she鈥檚 willing to print on a cake.
鈥淚f somebody said it, we鈥檒l put it on a cake,鈥� she said. 鈥淭he only time we won鈥檛 is if it鈥檚 something that鈥檚 violent or it鈥檚 clearly from a deranged troll.鈥�
When asked if she鈥檚 received any replies from the online trolls she鈥檚 mailed cakes to, Thek said she hasn鈥檛 yet but that she鈥檚 hoping she will soon.
鈥淚 check my P.O. box every day and I鈥檓 so excited looking for a response cake or something like that,鈥� she said.
The bubbly baker said she plans to keep creating her Troll Cakes and mailing them for as long as she can.
鈥樷�淚 love it. It鈥檚 fun,鈥� Thek said. 鈥淚t has a way of kind of putting everything into perspective.鈥�
