In an emotional video, Selena Gomez expressed her uneasiness with the Trump administration’s most recent immigration crackdown and promised to do everything in her power to assist.
Gomez, a Mexican-American who has long been an immigration rights activist, has described herself as a “proud third-generation American-Mexican.”
Selena Gomez, 32, posted an emotional video of herself crying while discussing US President Donald Trump’s recent immigration crackdown on her Instagram Stories on Monday, along with the caption, “I’m sorry,” and a Mexican flag.
The video was later removed, but it shows the Emilia Perez star crying as she expresses her disapproval of the Trump administration’s immigration-reduction measures.
“I just wanted to say that I’m so sorry. All my people are getting attacked, the children,” Gomez said between sobs. “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,” said Gomez, who has outspokenly supported immigration in the past, Rolling Stone reported.
956 persons were taken into custody
Selena Gomez’s popular video followed the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency’s nationwide immigration blitz on Sunday, which resulted in 956 arrests, the highest number since Donald Trump’s return as US president.
The BBC stated that a number of federal agencies, armed with enhanced detention powers, participated in the raids in various cities, including Miami, Newark, and Chicago. 593 arrests were made on Friday, 538 on Thursday, and 286 on Saturday.
ICE data showed that, despite the spike, former President Joe Biden averaged 311 immigration deportations per day, the majority of which were of criminal criminals.
During his four years in government, Biden’s administration deported 1.5 million people, according to data from the Migration Policy Institute. Trump made mass deportations of undocumented immigrants a key campaign pledge, which helped him win the US presidency again last year.
Selena Gomez later removed the video
After receiving criticism for her remarks, the singer-actor quickly removed the video and posted a black screen with the caption, “Apparently it’s not ok to show empathy for people.” Gomez claims to be a “proud third-generation American-Mexican,” despite being born in Texas. Her father is Mexican.
In response to Gomez’s video, Trump’s “border czar” Tom Homan said he has “no apologies” and is still committed to carrying out the deportation operations.
“I don’t think we’ve arrested any families. We’ve arrested public safety threats and national security threats, bottom line,” Homan added. “It is all for the good of this nation, and we’re gonna keep going,” he said.
Gomez, who was born in Texas and has Mexican ancestry, has been vocal about it. She starred in a short video as part of the Artist Spotlight Stories in 2021, after the publication of her first Spanish EP, Revelación, in which she talked about her Mexican heritage and identity.
In the video, she stated, “I wanted to share my story because I’m very proud of who I am”. “As a Mexican woman, I’ve learned so much and continue to learn so much.”
Gomez most recently performed in the musical “Emilia Perez,” which was nominated for 13 Oscars on Thursday and tells the tale of a fictional Mexican drug organisation.