Juli Briskman found herself the subject of national attention after a bold, impromptu act made its way through social media and news channels. And while the spontaneous middle finger she raised towards President Donald Trump’s motorcade cost the woman her job, she has found herself the unsuspecting beneficiary of thousands of donations online.
While riding her bike, the 50-year-old marketing executive became the anonymous subject of both praise and condemnation after she clearly and definitively shot her middle finger to Trump’s passing motorcade on a road in Sterling, Virginia. Though the incident took place last month, it wasn’t until weeks later that her name became public, costing the Northern Virginia resident and mother of two her job following outrage directed at her employer online.
Speaking to The Huffington Post, Briskman shared the details of her termination, recounting, “They said, ‘We’re separating from you.’” She continued, “Basically, you cannot have ‘lewd’ or ‘obscene’ things in your social media. So they were calling flipping him off ‘obscene.’”
While it appears she remains without employment following her firing, a GoFundMe campaign named “Thank You Juli Briskman” has raised over $60,000 (out of a goal of $100,000) in just seven days.
The brief message contained on the crowdfunding platform, written by the campaign creator, Rob Mello, reads:
“Juli Briskman is an inspiration to us all. This week we learned that she was fired from her employer for exercising her first amendment rights.
You can show your support by donating here.
I have connected with Juli and she has been officially setup as the beneficiary on this GoFundMe campaign.All proceeds are being donated directly to Juli. As the campaign beneficiary, she will be able to post updates and comments, so stay tuned!”
Briskman may not be an inspiration to those in favor of Trump, but to the anti-Trump contingent, her act serves as a simple and iconic indictment of the president’s tenure thus far. She may be out of a job for her bold (and some would say profane) display toward the president, but she can take some comfort in knowing that in addition to serving as a minor hero to Trump critics, she’ll have some cash on hand while she seeks a new job.
