We have all heard about the Israel-Palestine conflict and the number of casualties. We all have our stance on this issue, but the real question is whether celebrities have a moral responsibility to speak to their millions of followers on these issues. They should, for the most part, stay neutral. When celebs like Mark Hamill state, “America stands with Israel,” it may raise some awareness, but it won’t change anything. This is a complicated issue between the two countries; a celebrity making a statement will not automatically bring peace. 

Many celebrities are also out of touch with the rest of society. Remember in March of 2020, when the whole world went under lockdown due to the pandemic, celebrities, including Gal Gadot, decided to do a cover of the song “Imagine.” They really thought this would inspire and connect all of humanity. How tone-deaf do you have to be? The pandemic was a critical time in history for the whole world, and many people were struggling mentally, emotionally, and financially. But let’s give it up to Gal Gadot and the rest of her peers for solving all our problems. What would we do without these celebrities? A more recent incident involved Oprah Winfrey and Dwayne Johnson, who launched a fund to help the people of Maui after devastating fires tore through the region. They asked us regular folks to donate money. I understand we should help each other, but why are celebrities only asking us to help? Oprah and “The Rock” have millions of dollars to their names, so why are they not pulling a couple of dollars out of their own pockets? Donating a few thousand would be like spare change to them. Why is it only our responsibility, but not theirs? 

If celebrities really feel the need to speak their mind on an issue, they should be responsible for backing those claims. Kylie Jenner posted her support for Israel in her Instagram story, but backtracked her statement moments later. Now, she has upset people who are pro-Israel for backtracking her statement and the people who support Palestine for making that statement in the first place. If celebrities are going to speak out on a complicated issue, they need to stand behind their statement and provide reasons to back up their claims regardless of what other people think. They need to be educated and more empathetic towards people affected by these catastrophes. 

Photo from @MarkHamill via Twitter