In An Attempt To Defend Selena Gomez, Fans Have Become Worse Bullies Than Hailey Bieber
No mean girls allowed.
Tinseltown / Shutterstock, Olena Mats & Trendify / CanvaPro The online drama swirling between Selena Gomez and Hailey Bieber began with bikini photos, body shaming, and TikTok posts.
It changed form, due to overly-lacquered eyebrows, Instagram stories, and screenshots of a private FaceTime conversation between Bieber and Kylie Jenner.
The ongoing conflict has taken on a life of its own, turning into something much bigger than either Gomez or Bieber most likely assumed it would be.
Fans supporting Gomez have taken a loud and public stand against Bieber, who has lost over 200,000 Instagram followers due to the aforementioned events.
By defending Gomez from Bieber’s ‘bullying,’ her fans have morphed into bullies, themselves.
The Anti-Bullying Alliance defines bullying as “the repetitive, intentional hurting of one person or group by another person or group, where the relationship involves an imbalance of power.”
According to the ABA, bullying can be “physical, verbal, or psychological. It can happen face-to-face or online.”
As per this definition, Bieber’s posts and comments regarding Gomez could certainly be seen as adult bullying.
It's understandable that Gomez's fans want to defend her and it may even be admirable to call out some of the things Bieber is accused of doing — particularly the accusations that she body-shamed the singer.
However, as fans across the internet continue to weigh in, the backlash against Bieber has turned from constructive criticism to merciless bullying.
Bieber's physical appearance is getting mocked on TikTok. She's being accused of "stalking" her now-husband. Videos of her so-called embarrassing moments have flooded the app. And for what? These videos won't make Gomez feel better and they certainly won't help prevent bullying.
While Gomez has attempted to remove herself from the increasingly toxic situation with a social media break, Bieber seems to have doubled down on her mean-girl antics.
The Rhode skincare founder reposted a video to her Instagram stories featuring her skincare products.
In her post, she used the solo version of Rema's song “Calm Down,” without Selena Gomez — Gomez features on a duet version.
The post resulted in her being called out for shading Gomez, once again.
Gomez’s fanbase has stepped up to defend the star against Bieber, but it’s possible that they’ve gone too far.
Bieber posted a photo dump of a trip to London on Instagram, including an elevator-mirror selfie with her husband, Justin Bieber.
Her post received 1.8 million likes, and 24,000 comments. However, the majority of comments were negative.
Some users posted just to say that they were unfollowing her account. Others posted the hashtags #teamselena and #cancelhaileybieber.
“Karma is real,” wrote one commenter.
“You don't get to bully people and expect to get away with it,” said someone else.
“Mean girl behavior isn’t cute babes,” noted one commenter.
For all their support of Gomez, it seems lost on these fans that they, too, are engaging in mean girl behavior by engaging with Bieber’s social media solely to insult her.
As for Gomez, the Rare Beauty founder posted a “Get Ready With Me” video, in which she seemingly addresses Bieber’s bullying.
In the video, Gomez goes through her skincare and makeup routine.
She answers fan questions as she goes through her routine, even appearing to address the Bieber drama as she does.
“If you were to give the Rare Beauty community one piece of advice, what would it be?” asked one fan.
Gomez responded, “Try to be intentional. Take moments for you. Take moments for people that really matter.”
“I guess another piece of advice is just, be aware of who you surround yourself with.”
Fans believe that her answer was directed at Bieber and Jenner.
The advice Gomez gives is important, however, especially in the scheme of being bullied. Learning how to protect yourself against bullying, even in adulthood, is a valuable skill set to have. Removing yourself from the situation, whenever possible, is one way to navigate a toxic environment.
Finding support within a community of trusted friends can mitigate the negative effects bullying can have on your psyche.
While Gomez’s fans seem to think that lashing out against Bieber is the right course of action, in reality, it only perpetuates the cycle of harm.
Alexandra Blogier is a writer on YourTango's news and entertainment team. She covers celebrity gossip, pop culture analysis and all things to do with the entertainment industry.