Swift and Gomez attended the Brooklyn show for Egyptian-American comedian Ramy Youssef’s ‘More Feelings’ tour, whose proceeds are going towards humanitarian efforts in Gaza.
US megastars Taylor Swift and Selena Gomez attended a comedy show in New York this weekend that raised money for relief efforts in the Gaza Strip.
Swift and Gomez, along with fellow A-listers Cara Delevingne, Anya Taylor-Joy, and Zoe Kravitz, were photographed leaving the show by Egyptian-American comedian Ramy Youssef on Friday night.
The show, hosted at The Brooklyn Academy of Music, was part of Youssef’s ‘More Feelings’ tour.
All proceeds from Friday’s show were to go to American Near East Refugee Aid, an NGO currently working to provide humanitarian in Gaza – where almost 18,000 people have been killed in a brutal Israeli onslaught that has lasted two months.
Anera coordinated psychosocial support activities at two schools in Rafah, #Gaza today, with 400 #children participating in activities like races and games. Mothers also gathered sessions to talk about the traumas they and their families are experiencing. #Palestine #Palestinians pic.twitter.com/cidWqwLCSZ
— Anera (@AneraOrg) December 10, 2023
ANERA also work in the occupied West Bank, as well as in Jordan and Lebanon.
Both Swift and Gomez have drawn criticism for not using their fame to draw attention to Israel’s war on Gaza, which has injured tens of thousands of people and displaced almost the entirety of the Palestinian territory’s population since it began on 7 October.
Criticism for Gomez has been especially vocal as the singer and actress – who has almost half a billion followers on Instagram – said speaking up would do nothing to end the violence.
This was despite her posting in passionate defence of Ukraine following the 2022 Russian invasion.
The singer has also ‘liked’ anti-Palestinian social media posts by US comedian Amy Schumer.
Gomez’ cosmetics company Rare Beauty last month posted on Instagram to raise awareness of the “humanitarian crisis” in Gaza.
Swift – recently named TIME magazine’s ‘Person of the Year’ for 2023 – has been criticised by some fans for failing to stop screenings in Israel of her ‘The Eras Tour’ concert film.
Youssef, who achieved mainstream success with the television show ‘Ramy’, announced last month that all proceeds from the remainder of his ‘More Feelings’ tour would be given to ANERA.
