By
The Hadids have always been proud of their Palestinian heritage. Whether it’s Gigi sharing her favorite Palestinian food on her Twitter segment of #askgigi or Bella publicizing it in her Instagram bio, they’ve never shied away from embracing their roots. Many suggest that their father, Mohamed Hadid is in large part to thank for that.
Mohamed has been vocal about the importance of his Palestinian identity and sharing that with his children. He was the keynote speaker at the Arab Conference held at Harvard, and shared how significant it is to him that his family remains in touch with their Palestinian culture. “One of my dreams is to have my kids carry the name Palestine with them everywhere they go, because it seems like we are losing that name as we go on,” he shared, according to The National. “We want to make sure my family always carries that on.”
However, as big of a celebrity family as the Hadids may be—they’re still susceptible to attempts at being silenced, and this time it was none other than Instagram taking down Bella’s story. Bella shared a photo of her father’s passport highlighting his motherland as she captioned it, “My Baba and his birthplace of Palestine.”
As the model released what she thought was a little bit of sentimental family history, Instagram was swift to take the story down and cited that it fell under “graphic violence, hate speech, harassment and bullying, or nudity and sexual activity.”
But alas, as seen before in the past — Bella was not about to remain silent and let that slide. She took to her stories again, publicly calling out Instagram titling her post “A message to me from @Instagram…”
Bella expressed her dismay and anger over Instagram taking down her story where she was just being proud of her father’s birthplace. “Are we not allowed to be Palestinain on Instagram? This, to me, is bullying,” she wrote as part of a larger message. “You can’t erase history by silencing people. It doesn’t work like that.”
The model didn’t stop there and reposted the image on her story once again and wrote “I am proud to be Palestinian <3” in large text. She also added that everyone should remind their parents “of how proud you are of where you come from” and encouraged followers to post where their parents were born.
Hadid reposted several accounts who followed her lead and shared photos of their Palestinian parents’ passports on their stories, along with their history.
This isn’t the first time Bella has been vocal about her support and love for Palestine. In December 2017, Bella took to Instagram to speak out against Trump’s decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. Bella etched a long, heartfelt caption in which she said “The TREATMENT of the Palestinian people is unfair, one-sided and should not be tolerated.”
During the same month, Bella also attended a Free Palestine protest in London. According to TeenVogue, Bella was on her way back to her hotel after an event when she saw the protest and decided to join, still dressed in her floor-length deep-red gown and a bold red lip! Pictures of Bella at the protest quickly circulated over social media, with many people showing their support for her.
Bella Hadid putting words into action, marching with protestors in London in solidarity with Palestine, earlier this evening. #HandsOffJerusalem pic.twitter.com/gBFMINaKkT
— Lina (@Lina_Serene) December 8, 2017
Bella also frequently reposts informational posts in support of Palestine on her stories, including the most recent topic of discussion: Israel’s plans to annex the West Bank.
With all of that being said, one thing’s for certain—on or off the runway, Bella Hadid is a fierce, powerful woman who’s ready to take on the world.
READ MORE: Muslim Directioners, Rise Up: Gigi Hadid And Zayn Are Having A Child
CULTURE
