Selena Gomez Responds to Republican Politician Who Says She Should  Be Deported After Tearful Video with Mexican Flag

Mar. 15, 2025

Selena Gomezslammed a Republican politician who said she should be deported aftersharing an emotional videoappearing to react to PresidentDonald Trump’s recent immigration crackdown earlier this week.TheEmilia Pérezstar, 32,responded on Instagramto Sam Parker, a 2018 Republican Senate candidate from Utah, whowrote on X, “Deport Selena Gomez” aftercriticizing her videoon his personal account on X shortly after it was posted.In a post on her Instagram Stories, she wrote over a black background, “Oh, Mr. Parker, Mr. Parker. Thanks for the laugh and the threat.”In a since-deleted video posted on her Instagram Stories, Gomez seemingly shared a few words reacting to the recent deportations that have been occurring in the U.S. In text laid over the video, she wrote, “I’m sorry” and an emoji of the Mexican flag.Selena Gomez’s Instagram Stories.Selena Gomez/Instagram“All my people are getting attacked, the children,” she said in the video. “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.”In a follow-up post, she wrote over a black background, “Apparently it’s not ok to show empathy for people.“Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.Selena Gomez on Sept. 8, 2024 in Toronto.KC Armstrong/Deadline via GettyThe “Calm Down” musician’s post came one day after 956 people were arrested in a nationwide immigration crackdown — the most since Trump took office on Jan. 20, per Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), via theBBC. There were 956 reported arrests on Sunday, 286 arrests on Saturday and 593 arrests on Friday, according to the outlet.Per the Migration Policy Institute via the BBC,former President Joe Bidenexecuted 1.5 million deportations during his first four years — numbers which “mirror the deportation numbers in Trump’s first term.“Gomez, who previously produced the Netflix docuseriesLiving Undocumented, which centered on the lives of undocumented families in the United States, has been outspoken in her advocacy for immigration, especially as her family had experiences with it.Inan emotional op-edforTimein October 2019, she shared that her aunt “was the first out of her family to cross the border from Mexico into the U.S. in the back of a truck in the 1970s.” According to the singer, her “grandparents followed” and her “father was born in Texas soon after."“Undocumented immigration is an issue I think about every day, and I never forget how blessed I am to have been born in this country thanks to my family and the grace of circumstance,” she wrote in the op-ed.TheOnly Murders in the Buildingstar noted that her story wasn’t the norm, and shared while watching footage about the eight subjects inLiving Undocumented, “When I read the news headlines or see debates about immigration rage on social media, I feel afraid for those in similar situations. I feel afraid for my country.”

Selena Gomezslammed a Republican politician who said she should be deported aftersharing an emotional videoappearing to react to PresidentDonald Trump’s recent immigration crackdown earlier this week.

TheEmilia Pérezstar, 32,responded on Instagramto Sam Parker, a 2018 Republican Senate candidate from Utah, whowrote on X, “Deport Selena Gomez” aftercriticizing her videoon his personal account on X shortly after it was posted.

In a post on her Instagram Stories, she wrote over a black background, “Oh, Mr. Parker, Mr. Parker. Thanks for the laugh and the threat.”

In a since-deleted video posted on her Instagram Stories, Gomez seemingly shared a few words reacting to the recent deportations that have been occurring in the U.S. In text laid over the video, she wrote, “I’m sorry” and an emoji of the Mexican flag.

Selena Gomez’s Instagram Stories.Selena Gomez/Instagram

Selena Gomez/Instagram

“All my people are getting attacked, the children,” she said in the video. “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.”

In a follow-up post, she wrote over a black background, “Apparently it’s not ok to show empathy for people.”

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Selena Gomez on Sept. 8, 2024 in Toronto.KC Armstrong/Deadline via Getty

KC Armstrong/Deadline via Getty

The “Calm Down” musician’s post came one day after 956 people were arrested in a nationwide immigration crackdown — the most since Trump took office on Jan. 20, per Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), via theBBC. There were 956 reported arrests on Sunday, 286 arrests on Saturday and 593 arrests on Friday, according to the outlet.

Per the Migration Policy Institute via the BBC,former President Joe Bidenexecuted 1.5 million deportations during his first four years — numbers which “mirror the deportation numbers in Trump’s first term.”

Gomez, who previously produced the Netflix docuseriesLiving Undocumented, which centered on the lives of undocumented families in the United States, has been outspoken in her advocacy for immigration, especially as her family had experiences with it.

Inan emotional op-edforTimein October 2019, she shared that her aunt “was the first out of her family to cross the border from Mexico into the U.S. in the back of a truck in the 1970s.” According to the singer, her “grandparents followed” and her “father was born in Texas soon after.”

“Undocumented immigration is an issue I think about every day, and I never forget how blessed I am to have been born in this country thanks to my family and the grace of circumstance,” she wrote in the op-ed.

TheOnly Murders in the Buildingstar noted that her story wasn’t the norm, and shared while watching footage about the eight subjects inLiving Undocumented, “When I read the news headlines or see debates about immigration rage on social media, I feel afraid for those in similar situations. I feel afraid for my country.”

source: people.com