Days after singer-actor Selena Gomez was seen crying in a video over the Trump administration’s mass deportations, the White House on Saturday shared a clip featuring three women whose children were allegedly “murdered by illegal aliens”, a term used for undocumented immigrants.

“You don’t know who you’re crying for. What about our children who were brutally murdered, and raped and beaten to death and left on the floor by these illegal immigrants?,” Tammy Nobles, the mother of Kayla Hamilton who was reportedly killed by an El Salvadoran national in 2021, said in the video posted on White House’s official X handle.

“You didn’t cry for our daughters,” she added.

“Kayla Hamilton, Jocelyn Nungaray, and Rachel Morin were murdered by illegal aliens. Their courageous mothers had something to say to Selena Gomez and those who oppose securing our borders,” the White House said in the caption.

Kayla Hamilton, Jocelyn Nungaray, and Rachel Morin were murdered by illegal aliens.

Their courageous mothers had something to say to @SelenaGomez and those who oppose securing our borders. Watch pic.twitter.com/KfsqQGwhqj

— The White House (@WhiteHouse) January 31, 2025

In a now-deleted Instagram video, Ms Gomez, whose father is Mexican, described the arrests of illegal immigrants as an attack on “all my people”.

“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,” she said as she broke down in tears in the video posted on January 27.

The caption on her video read, “I’m sorry,” and included a Mexican flag emoji. She, however, deleted the clip after backlash.

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Alexis Nungaray, whose 12-year-old daughter Jocelyn was killed last year, said it was “hard to believe” Ms Gomez in the video as “she’s an actress”.

“Seeing that video, it’s hard to believe that it’s actually genuine and real because she’s an actress. My daughter was a child. There are many other children whose lives were taken due to people who cross here illegally,” she said.

Patty Morin, whose daughter Rachel was reportedly killed in 2023, said Ms Gomez’s video was “just a ruse to deceive people and to garner sympathy for lawlessness”.

The three women also thanked Donald Trump for action against illegal immigration within days of taking office on January 20 and said he is “making things happen”.

“President Trump genuinely cares for the American people and the American family,” Ms Morin said, as she vowed to stand by him to “make America safer again”.

X Users Slam White House For Selena Gomez Video

The White House, however, was slammed for the video, with several X users saying it was “inciting anger towards” Selena Gomez.

“This is disgusting – the WH official account is here shaming and inciting anger towards an individual American. Forget the politics here – if you think it’s okay for the WH to attack a citizen like this you’re in for a rude awakening when the dictator comes at you,” a user said.

“This is so grossly inappropriate and weird putting a target on Selena’s back by using the White House to personally attack a private citizen. I hope she sues y’all,” wrote another.

Many users also said the White House’s video was “very inappropriate and unprofessional”.

Earlier this week, Tom Homan, Trump’s border czar, also reacted to Selena Gomez’s video and dismissed the criticism of raids carried out by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

“I don’t think we arrested any families. We’ve arrested public safety threats and national security threats,” he said.

“No apologies. We’re moving forward to make our communities safer,” Mr Homan concluded, citing the potential reduction in fentanyl deaths, “illegal alien” crimes, and human trafficking as outcomes of stricter border enforcement.

New Delhi:

A recent video capturing an unusual interaction between an Indian man and pop star Selena Gomez has ignited a flurry of reactions online. In the viral clip, the man eagerly snaps a selfie with Ms Gomez before making a surprising request: please chant “Jai Shri Ram.”

When Ms Gomez appears puzzled, the man attempts to clarify, adding, “India’s best slogan – Jai Shri Ram.” However, the 32-year-old Gomez, politely dismissive, responds with a simple, “Aww, thank you, honey.”

The video was first shared by Instagram user Pallav Paliwal and has rapidly gained traction across social media platforms. Mr Paliwal captioned it, “One of our followers met Selena Gomez and she said ‘Jai Shri Ram‘ on the occasion of Diwali.” 

According to his post, the exchange supposedly took place on Diwali. However, sharp-eyed viewers have identified Gomez’s attire which she wore at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival in May. 

This unusual request has sparked strong reactions online, with many users expressing their embarrassment and frustration. “I got levels of embarrassment I couldn’t believe were possible,” one user wrote on X. 

Others were less restrained in their criticism. “Most pathetic thing I’ve seen all year,” commented another. A third user added, “Even though I am not associated with these people, I got secondhand embarrassment from just watching this. What kind of incurable inferiority complex is this?!”

Mr Paliwal’s original post on Instagram has garnered nearly 20,000 likes. On other platforms like X and Facebook, the video has fetched millions of views as well. 

American actress, singer and entrepreneur Selena Gomez is now a billionaire, according to Bloomberg, which values her net worth at $1.3 billion. Some of the wealth of the 32-year-old comes from singing, brand partnership and acting, but the “vast bulk” of her wealth is tied to her 5-year-old make-up company called Rare Beauty, the outlet said. Her brand’s success has made her one of the “youngest self-made” wealthy on the Bloomberg Billionaire Index, alongside the likes of Taylor Swift and Rihanna. 

According to Bloomberg, the ‘Only Murders in the Building’ star has also amassed wealth as the world’s third most-followed person on Instagram behind soccer icons Cristiano Ronaldo who boasts 639 million followers on the platform and Lionel Messi who has garnered 505 million Instagram followers. Ms Gomez herself has 424 million followers. 

Selena Gomez has a storybook career, beginning with ‘The Wizards of Waverly Place’ – a popular TV show on Disney Channel. She has a slew of other popular TV shows and film projects as well. She created a now-cancelled Max cooking show ‘Selena + Chef’ and stars alongside comedy icons Martin Short and Steve Martin on the hit show ‘Only Murders in the Building’. The 32-year-old has also brought in tens of millions of dollars from endorsement deals with the likes of Louis Vuitton, Coach and Puma, according to Bloomberg. 

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However, despite her on-screen success, those achievements count for a relatively small fraction of her wealth. The “vast bulk” of her wealth is tied to Rare Beauty, which she launched in 2020. The brand reportedly did net sales of $400 million in the 12 months to February. She also reportedly reached out to investors for Rare Beauty, seeking a $2 billion valuation. 

In 2020, Ms Gomes revealed that she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and later said in an interview that any deal struck with her has to have an element that’s charitable or in the mental health space. She started the Rare Impact Fund to help raise $100 million to help people gain access to mental health services. 

Other revenue streams for the 32-year-old include income from her show ‘Only Murders in the Building,’ which was just renewed for a fifth season where she reportedly makes $6 million a season, and a smaller slice from her music royalties.