Social media is in an uproar over actor and singer Selena Gomez and the manner in which she commented on the massacre of Palestinians in Gaza, as well as her unceremonious ‘exit’ from social media after being called out for it.
On October 31, Gomez shared a story on Instagram, addressing her silence on the violence.
“I’ve been taking a break from social media because my heart breaks to see all of the horror, hate, violence and terror that’s going on in the world. People being tortured and killed or any act of hate towards any one group is horrific,” she wrote. “We need to protect ALL people, especially children and stop the violence for good. I’m sorry if my words will never be enough for everyone or a hashtag. I just can’t stand by innocent people getting hurt. That’s what makes me sick. I wish I could change the world. But a post won’t. Love, Selena.”
Obviously, people weren’t satisfied with this wishy-washy post. FYI — Selena Gomez is the most followed woman on Instagram with 430 million followers and she’s been a UNICEF ambassador since 2009. People were especially angry that she didn’t use her platform to advocate for peace and downplayed her own influence.
Especially when everyone knows what kind of influence she has — most notably Hailey Bieber.
Soon after the backlash, Gomez posted another story in which she said she’s taking a break and “deleting her Instagram”. “I’m done. I do not support any of what’s going on,” she wrote. She didn’t actually delete her Instagram though.
Basically, she was bullied off the internet.
In the victim complex war, there can only be one winner and her name is Selena.
People are mad that she’s making the entire situation about herself.
They noted how she responded to other incidents — like Taylor Swift being bullied.
And compared it to Angelina Jolie’s response to the violence in Gaza.
It opened many people’s eyes about her.
This person had a great explanation about the whole situation and why it matters that Gomez has been silent.
Over 9,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since the start of Israel’s siege and thousands others wounded. Hospitals, schools and churches have been bombed and people are starving. Calls for a ceasefire have been echoing around the world — including in Gomez’s own fraternity. Dozens of actors and singers have signed a letter calling on US President Joe Biden to stop the attacks on Palestine. Selena Gomez isn’t one of them.
Selena Gomez threatens to ‘delete’ Instagram after being called out for ‘making genocide about herself’