CHANDLER, AZ (KTVK) — An 11-word tweet.
That’s what it took for a Chandler mom’s name to be beamed across the internet and picked up by national news websites in the U.S. and the U.K.
Those 11 words got Brenda Webb labeled a “Twitter Troll,” whose “demise” was celebrated in countless memes, messages and posts.
“We gather here today in loving memory of Brenda Webb,” one user wrote sarcastically. “RIP,” wrote another.
On their own, the 11 words hardly warrant a second glance, let alone a retweet. But Brenda Webb’s tweet was directed at music icon Cher, and the singer’s response stunned the web.
“Why little old me in Chandler, Arizona?” said the 61-year-old mother with a laugh. “I didn’t feel like I said anything that drastic that I should be crucified for it.”
It started Thursday morning when Cher tweeted about President Trump’s decision to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.
Minutes later, Brenda responded: “Sure you will Cher.. I’ll believe it when I see it!”
Cher lashed back.
It took Webb a moment to realize what had just happened.
“I told my son, I said, ‘Mark! Is she saying this to me?’ And he’s like, ‘Yea mom. I think she is.’ I didn’t know! I was shocked,” she said.
The avalanche of responses from Cher’s fans forced Brenda to set all of her social media profiles on “private.”
Webb said she’s been a Cher fan since the singer’s first hits with Sonny. And she says her tweet was widely misunderstood: she actually agrees with Cher’s politics.
“I believe that the Dreamers, they didn’t ask to come here. Their parents brought them. Plain and simple,” she said. “It’s great what she’s doing and great what she suggested other celebs to do. It’s wonderful! I don’t have anything against that. I just — her promises, I want to make sure she just keeps her promises.”
Webb points out that Cher has made sarcastic promises in the past. At a time when a number of celebrities were pledging to leave the country if Donald Trump won the election, Cher added her name to the list, saying she’d move to “Jupiter.” Cher also said she didn’t know if she could “breathe the same air” as Mitt Romney if he were elected.
“She’s still here! That to me does not show keeping your promise and keeping your word,” Webb said.
Promises are important to Webb: she felt guilty rescheduling a nail appointment to do an interview with 3TV/CBS 5 for this story.
She’s unemployed, battling asthma and emphysema, up against a singer worth an estimated $300 million. Still, Webb feels apologetic.
“I mean if she sees this, I’m sorry Cher, but I didn’t mean anything. I really truly did not mean anything by that to make you feel awful,” she said.
Despite the dis, Webb says she will remain a Cher fan.
She plans to lie low on social media for a while.
