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.”
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.”
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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).
Given the overwhelmingly negative response to Gomez’s statement, it seems like that social media break of hers is well-advised.
