One fitness model’s search for fame went viral when she posted “sultry” photos in front of her deceased father’s casket. Her dad was a decorated veteran, and the images outraged many of her followers, who called her “sick,” “vile,” and “disgusting.”
Jayne Rivera is an Instagram fitness model and TikTok personality known for her fashion, travel, and swimwear postings. When her father died, the Florida model shared a series of photos in front of his casket, which were judged “totally inappropriate” by her fans.
Rivera’s father was a decorated veteran, and funerals for our military heroes are solemn events conducted with reverence and respect. When social media users saw the Instagram influencer’s “photo shoot,” they were upset, with many saying that she didn’t look to be in mourning. Rivera was described as “sexy and sultry” in the photos.
“Butterfly fly away. Rip Papi you were my best friend. A life well lived,” Rivera said in her post on Instagram. In the photos, the Miami model was dressed in a fitted, black one-sleeve blazer dress as she stood by her father’s coffin, which was draped with an American flag. Thousands of people were outraged by the photographs on social media, the New York Post reported.
In one photo, Rivera posed with her hands in prayer. However, she was chastised for how she posed in another photo in front of the open casket with one leg lifted.
“Not cool Jayne, ur dad was a decorated vet, a photo shot by his casket should be beneath you. May he rest in eternal peace,” one follower wrote.
“Funeral photo shoots? Yeesh,” said another.
“S**t is just vile, and downright disgusting,” a third person commented.
A fourth person said, “The fact that u would post something like this tells us everything we need to know about you.”
Jayne Rivera lost a chunk of her Instagram and TikTok fanbase following her viral “funeral photo shoot,” it was reported. Many of her fans unfollowed her and strongly encouraged others to do the same.
“Jayne, delete these pics, apologize for your lack of discretion or I will stop following you and I hope others will do the same,” one furious fan wrote.
“This is a hard unfollow. God rest that man’s soul,” said another fan.
A third fan simply commented, “Unfollowed.”
One social media user saw the funeral photos shared by Rivera and said it was “the most horrific Instagram post” they had ever seen. Many people seemed to agree.
“I can’t get over this,” one person wrote.
After the images went viral, Jayne Rivera decided to respond to the backlash. The fitness influencer told NBC News that she “understood the negative reception,” but explained that the photographs were taken “with the best intentions in a manner my father would have approved with had he still been alive.”
“Everyone handles the loss of a loved one in their own ways; some are more traditional while others might come across as taboo,” Rivera said. “For me, I treated the celebration as if my father was right next to me, posing for the camera as he had done on many occasions prior.”
Jayne Rivera defended her decision to post the controversial photos, saying, “There is nothing wrong with what I posted, and I stand by that.” While many criticized her decision to post the photographs on social media, several people pointed out that the backlash was just as inappropriate as the post itself.
“Not what I’d have done, though grief is a weird thing,” one person wrote. “Maybe putting this girl on blast on the day of her dad’s funeral is a thing you could have chosen not to do.”
Rivera added that her father was frequently featured in her Instagram stories, so she felt it was acceptable for her followers to know he had passed away. “I have worked extremely hard for eight long years building my audience,” she said. “People from the outside judge a book by its cover without stopping to understand the intentions or underlying meanings of the book.”