Arizona couple and daughter Isis suffer abuse for miracle child's name

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Ciara and Jacob Martinez, of Arizona, struggled to conceive so named their first-born daughter Isis after the Egyptian goddess of fertility in 2010
Since the rise of terror group ISIS, they have been subject of abuse
It was made worse when Isis contracted a neurological disease and they tried to raise awareness with car stickers that read '#TeamIsis'
People drive into them, strangers call the child a 'disgrace to America'
Their friend was 'investigated by FBI' for wearing the #TeamIsis sticker

Published: 22:42 EST, 25 June 2015 | Updated: 20:35 EST, 26 June 2015

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A family has been targeted with abuse after naming their daughter Isis.

Having struggled to conceive, Ciara and Jacob Martinez named their first-born after the Egyptian goddess of fertility because 'it was a miracle'.

Isis Isabella Martinez, now five years old, has since been diagnosed with a rare neurological disease - which Ciara says makes the name all the more appropriate.

But since the rise of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria - commonly known by the acronym ISIS - strangers have taken to hurling insults at their family, branding the innocent little girl 'a disgrace to America'.

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Unfair abuse: Strangers have hurled abuse at Ciara Martinez (right) for naming her daughter (left) Isis

Namesake: Isis Isabella Martinez was named after the Egyptian goddess because she was 'a miracle'

Raising awareness: Ciara printed these car stickers for a fundraiser for Isis, who has Rett Syndrome. After that, drivers started trying to drive them off the road, flipping them off and hurling abuse

On a regular basis, doctors, therapists, and passers-by sternly advise Ciara, 23, and Jacob, 27, to change their daughter's name as it has become synonymous with the murderous terror group.

And one of their friends was even investigated by the FBI on suspicion of terrorism.

The controversy started last August, when they held a fundraiser to pay for a trip to Katie's Clinic in San Francisco.

The center specializes in Rett Syndrome. No doctors in their native Tucson, Arizona, are qualified to treat the disease, which has left Isis non-verbal.

To raise awareness, Ciara printed stickers that read '#TeamIsis', the social media tagline that they have used since Isis was diagnosed with RS in 2012.

More than 50 people bought the stickers to paste on their car.

Driving home through Arizona, they sparked outrage.

'I honestly didn't think anything of it when I printed them,' Ciara, who also has a two-year-old daughter Imelia, told Daily Mail Online.

'I had started to hear of ISIS the terror group a couple of months earlier but to me that's just an acronym, my daughter's name is something completely different.

'But after the event people started trying to drive me off the road, flipping me off, being aggressive... It was horrible.

Ciara and Jacob said their struggle to support Isis through her illness has been made harder by the abuse

Innocent: Isis (left, with her two-year-old sister Imelia) has lost the ability to speak due to Rett Syndrome

Doctors and therapists have even sternly advised them to change her name, but they won't be swayed

'At first I thought it was something to do with my driving, then my family and friends started getting abuse and we realized it was the stickers.'

It reached breaking point when a member of the public reported one of the family's friends to the FBI.

Ciara explained: 'They are just a husband, wife and their little daughter. They were investigated for about a week and finally an agent came to their house to question them about terrorism in Arizona. They said someone reported them for having the #TeamIsis sticker.

'My friends told them, "no we were just supporting our friend's daughter Isis who has Rett Syndrome".'

The cause has also been hijacked by a collection of Twitter users.

'Some people have tweeted me saying she's "a disgrace to America with that name".

In person, it is no worse.

'A couple of months ago we had a doctor's appointment and the first thing she said was "it's so unfortunate that she's called Isis, you should really change it".

'And people come up to me in stores if I say "hey Isis, come over here", to say, "you have to change that name".

'I am just dumb-founded. No I am not going to change my daughter's name because this terror group came to public attention.'

Terror group: The rise of the terror group ISIS prompted people to hurl abuse at the Martinez family

The constant comments, Ciara says, are difficult to deal with as the family tries to help Isis cope with her illness.

Rett Syndrome is a neurodevelopmental disease, which sees children start to develop then regress.

Isis had about 20 words before she became non-verbal once more at the age of two. It took a year for a doctor to diagnose her with Rett Syndrome, after initially thinking she had gone deaf.

To date, there is no known cure, and the Martinez family are determined to continue raising awareness with the tag #TeamIsis as they strive to get treatment.

And despite the backlash, they refuse to be swayed into changing Isis's name.

'Yesterday I did notice for the first time how much terrorists use the hash tag, which is a shame,' Ciara tells Daily Mail Online.

'But my daughter's name is beautiful, and she's not the only one called Isis. It is an old name that has a beautiful meaning.

'We are not going to change her name over this. We know what it means and so do so many other people.'