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American YouTuber Rachel Accurso, who runs the beloved children’s channel Ms Rachel for Littles, has said silence wasn’t a choice for her after she watched videos of children suffering in Gaza.

In an interview with Mehdi Hasan for his independent media company Zeteo, Accurso, who has remained vocal on the plight of Gaza’s children, said that it should be controversial to not say anything.

“It’s sad that people try to make it controversial when you speak out for children that are facing immeasurable suffering.” The YouTuber said her compassion didn’t have boundaries or borders, adding that she simply loved children.

“The idea that caring for a group of children in an emergency situation means you don’t care about other children is false.” Last year, Accurso said she was facing severe bullying for not caring about “all children” after she started a campaign to raise funds for children in distress in Gaza, Ukraine, and Sudan, but did not include Israeli children.

‘Doesn’t make any sense’

Hasan asked Accurso what if there was particular news coming out of Gaza that stopped her in her tracks.

“There are multiple that I can’t forget. There was a little boy who was shocked, and he was shaking, and there was so much terror in his eyes. A healthcare worker was being so compassionate, and he finally was able to cry because he was so shocked he couldn’t even cry,” she said.

Accurso’s voice broke as she spoke of Hind Rajab. The six-year-old Palestinian girl pleaded to be rescued, after her family’s car came under fire in Gaza City, leaving her alone, frightened and injured, surrounded by the bodies of her dead relatives.

“I am so scared,” she had said in a desperate phone call to the Palestine Red Crescent Society. “Call someone to come get me, please.” But her body was recovered after more than two weeks of frantic efforts to reach her.

Accurso said she would never forget Rajab’s voice on the phone call. “I know some people can’t even listen because it’s so hard, and that’s understandable.”

The YouTuber wiped a tear away when she talked about seeing a child in a rainbow onesie, similar to one her own daughter owned. “I had to give it away,” Accurso said.

She continued that the situation didn’t make any sense because “as grown-ups we know what children need and what they deserve and what will help them grow into happy, healthy adults. It will benefit us all.

“It’s right to speak out because this is wrong. But it’s right to speak out because it’s going to benefit everyone.”

Accurso said she was blessed to have her platform — her YouTube channel boasts over 14 million followers and billions of views — and that kids felt she deeply cared about them, which is why she had the platform.

“They feel it through the screen, because it’s genuine. And kids know when things aren’t genuine. And that care doesn’t end with the kids that are watching, or any kids.”

Earlier this year, Stop Antisemitism, a self-proclaimed “non-partisan US-based organisation” that fights against antisemitism, called on US Attorney General Pam Bondi to investigate Accurso after she voiced support and raised funds for the children of Gaza.

The group, which has been posting images celebrating students being deported from the US over pro-Palestine views, asked AG Bondi to investigate if Accurso was “funded by a foreign party to push anti-Israel propaganda to skew public opinion,” it detailed in an Instagram post.

They claimed that Accurso “transformed into an amplifier of Hamas propaganda, broadcasting to 20M+ followers across her platforms.”