Selena Gomez, the global pop sensation and actress, ignited a wave of conversation on Monday after she shared a deeply emotional video as an Instagram Story in which she addressed President Donald Trump’s recent immigration crackdown.
The Emilia Perez star, who has never stepped back from embracing her Mexican heritage, broke down in tears as she was seen expressing her anguish over the Trump administration’s deportation policies, finding them to be devastating for her community.
“All my people are getting attacked, the children. I don’t understand. I’m so sorry. I wish I could do something, but I can’t. I don’t know what to do. I’ll try everything, I promise,” Gomez, 32, said in the video, while her voice was clearly overwhelmed with emotions. She captioned her video with “I’m sorry” and a Mexican flag emoji.
However, the post quickly became a lightning rod for controversy. It amassed over a whopping 36 million views before Gomez deleted it following a surge of heavy online trolling. Many critics attacked the singer for sharing her feelings on the issue.
One commenter wrote, “It’s not Trump’s immigration law against Mexicans and Latinos. It is U.S. law against people that enter the country illegally.”Another comment read, “All her people? My people are fellow Americans, including those who came here from anywhere in the world, followed the rules, and swore an oath.”
lmao who’s falling for this theatrics??
— Debayo 🧩 (@debayo_xx) January 27, 2025
All the backlash led Selena Gomez to delete the video and post another story shortly after. “Apparently it’s not ok to show empathy for people,” she wrote, as she seemed disheartened by the backlash. Soon after, she took down that story as well!
The deportation policies that resulted in Gomez’s tearful response mark the most significant operation since Donald Trump returned to the Oval Office. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) recently announced the arrest of 956 individuals in a nationwide sweep, with the Department of Defense providing military aircraft to deport over 5,000 detainees.
Selena Gomez has deleted her emotional video crying due to Mexicans getting deported:
“Apparently it’s not ok to show empathy for people” pic.twitter.com/ayTCwlxZFz
— Pop Base (@PopBase) January 27, 2025
Selena Gomez has long been taking a stand on immigrant rights. In 2019, she produced the Netflix docuseries Living Undocumented, which brought about the struggles of immigrant families in America.
That same year, she penned a heartfelt op-ed for TIME magazine, where she detailed her own family’s journey as Mexican immigrants and discussed elaborately the importance of empathy and understanding for those who have been affected by immigration policies. The backlash on her reaction is a clear example of the polarized reactions on such issues.
However, Selena Gomez’s heartfelt message of compassion and empathy for “her people” will stand as a powerful reminder of her commitment to taking a stand for her roots and community.
