Selena Gomez is the latest celebrity to break their silence on the ongoing violence in Israel and Palestine. On Monday night, around the same time she was photographed at a Los Angeles Lakers game, the Only Murders in the Building star wrote on her Instagram Stories that she’s been “taking a break from social media” due to the “violence and terror” happening in the world.
“People being tortured or 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.”
Selena Gomez in a statement:
“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.” pic.twitter.com/L0dIxaGM7z
— Pop Crave (@PopCrave) October 31, 2023
The 31-year-old’s post continued, “I’m sorry if my words will never be enough for anyone 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.” She then posted a black-and-white throwback photo of her younger half-sister Gracie Elliot Teefey, adding, “Having a sister, everyday has made me tragically sick. I would do anything for children and innocent lives.”
Despite her massive popularity on Instagram and TikTok, Gomez has been known to have a complicated relationship with social media. In a Good Morning America interview last year, the singer discussed how she hadn’t been on the internet for “four and a half years” to preserve her mental health. Afterward, she started being active on some platforms, especially TikTok, before announcing another social media hiatus in February following some stan-driven drama between her and Hailey Bieber.
When it comes to how she’s handled responding to various world events over the years, Gomez was previously criticized for appearing to reduce the Black Lives Matter movement to a hashtag on more than one occasion. (She eventually declared her support for BLM during the 2020 protests.)
Likewise, her words about the violence in the Middle East are generating a similar amount of backlash on X, formerly known as Twitter, with pro-Palestine users accusing her of taking a “neutral” stance and being selectively outspoken. Others pointed out her claim that a post won’t “change the world,” considering the size of her platform (she currently has over 430 million followers on Instagram).
430 millions of followers. Yes a post can do a lot selena gomez, you taking a break on social media cause this “affect you” but you’re in a millions dollar house while people are getting killed. you can’t even defend palestine you take a “neutral” stance to save face. https://t.co/NwbW2Yjfxu
— 𝑑𝑢𝑙🎀 (@dolchiie) October 31, 2023
Selena gomez when the topic is not about her mental health https://t.co/XsynR2g0wT
— 🇵🇸🇦🇲 (@fitnfuII) October 31, 2023
my friends and i with our few thousands followers have been posting and arguing with zionists for years but miss selena gomez’s post to her 500 millions followers isn’t gonna change anything? https://t.co/TH4AjKCgUh
— hania ⵣ (@regrttes) October 31, 2023
"I wish I could change the world. But a post wont."
Shame on you Selena Gomez. You have 430 million followers yet people with less followers be doing so much more.
Our voices are being heard. You are just ignorant.
— Sarah Mustafa (@srhmstfa_) October 31, 2023
https://twitter.com/Keshalia_21/status/1719263262355628483?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1719263262355628483%7Ctwgr%5Eb4cf79c1ebbd01c2cf982a6ab69dce4fc72efd68%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.thedailybeast.com%2Fselena-gomez-gets-dragged-for-ignorant-statement-on-israel
Given the overwhelmingly negative response to Gomez’s statement, it seems like that social media break of hers is well-advised.
Source: thedailybeast
