A cyclist in Virginia, who was photographed raising her middle finger at United States President Donald Trump’s motorcade in October, on Monday said she was fired because of that image, The New York Times reported.

Juli Briskman, who worked for government contractor Akima LLC, was cycling in Lowes Island Boulevard near one of Trump’s golf courses, when she reacted in protest against the president’s policies.

“He [Donald Trump] was passing by and my blood just started to boil,” Briskman, a 50-year-old mother of two, told Huffington Post. “I am thinking, DACA recipients are getting kicked out. He pulled advertisements for open enrolment in Obamacare. Only one-third of Puerto Rico has power. I am thinking, he is at the damn golf course again.”

Briskman, who is a supporter of the Democratic Party, said she “flipped off the motorcade a number of times”.

A photographer from AFP travelling in the president’s entourage took a photograph of her action and the image soon went viral on social media, reported The Guardian.

As her social media feed blew up, Briskman approached the Human Resource department in her office to let them know what was happening. By Tuesday, her bosses informed her that she had violated the company’s social media policy by using a “lewd and obscene” photo as her profile picture on Twitter and Facebook.

“We have chosen to separate from you,” she quoted one of her employers as saying, The New York Times reported.

The company did not respond to requests for comments, The New York Times and Huffington Post reported.