The White House blasted actress Selena Gomez after she got viral backlash over a video she posted and deleted of herself sobbing about recent immigration enforcement measures.
Through a video shared on the official White House X account and by press secretary Karoline Leavitt, the mothers of three victims, including two women and a young girl, who were allegedly murdered by individuals with undocumented migrants, spoke out.
“Kayla Hamilton, Jocelyn Nungaray, and Rachel Morin were murdered by illegal aliens. Their courageous mothers had something to say to @SelenaGomez and those who oppose securing our borders,” read the post accompanying the clip, which calls out Gomez directly.
Tammy Nobles, whose daughter Kayla Hamilton was raped and murdered in Maryland allegedly by El Salvadorian national Walter Javier Martinez, addressed Gomez in the video, saying, “You don’t know who you’re crying for.”
Kayla Hamilton, Jocelyn Nungaray, and Rachel Morin were murdered by illegal aliens.
Their courageous mothers had something to say to @SelenaGomez and those who oppose securing our borders. Watch ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/KfsqQGwhqj
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) January 31, 2025
“What about our children who were brutally murdered, and raped and beat to death and left on the floor by these illegal immigrants?” Nobles added.
The White House clip highlighted stills from Gomez’s original video, which showed her tearfully expressing sorrow over widespread deportations carried out by the Trump administration.
The actress had shared the footage last week on Instagram but removed it immediately amid an epic amount of backlash.
Selena Gomez just posted a video crying about deportations, but deleted it after outrage from fans…. pic.twitter.com/xRTO8x4ND5
— End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) January 27, 2025
“All my people are getting attacked, the children. I don’t understand. I’m so sorry, I wish I could do something, but I can’t,” Gomez sobbed in the recording. “I don’t know what to do. I’ll try everything, I promise.”
Patty Morin, whose daughter Rachel Morin, a mother of five, was brutally killed on Maryland’s Ma and Pa Trail in 2023, criticized Gomez, calling the video “a ruse to deceive people and garner sympathy for lawlessness.”
Authorities have linked the crime to Victor Antonio Martinez-Hernandez, a 23-year-old who allegedly entered the U.S. without permission after fleeing legal charges in El Salvador for a similar crime.
Meanwhile, Alexis Nungaray, whose 12-year-old daughter Jocelyn was tragically slain, expressed skepticism over Gomez’s video. “It’s hard to believe what she says because she’s an actress,” Nungaray said.
The death of Jocelyn became a potent symbol in last year’s intense immigration debate between President Donald Trump and former President Joe Biden.
Trump blamed Biden’s border policies for the girl’s death via Truth Social, while Biden’s team pointed to Trump’s role in derailing bipartisan immigration reform talks as a counterargument.
Two men, Johan Jose Martinez-Rangel and Franklin Pena, have been accused in Jocelyn’s killing, and both reportedly had holds placed on them for immigration violations by ICE.
Amid the discussion, Nungaray praised Trump for his stricter immigration measures. “It’s only been two weeks, if that, since he’s been in office, and he’s taking accountability, and he’s making moves, and he’s making things happen,” she proclaimed in the White House video.
Throughout the clip, the mothers shared their frustration at what they see as a lack of empathy from Gomez and other liberals.
“They didn’t cry for our daughters,” said Nobles in reference to those supporting leniency for undocumented immigrants.
This sentiment was mirrored by border czar Tom Homan during a recent Fox News appearance on “Hannity.”
“We got a half a million children who were sex trafficked into this country, separated from their families, put in the hands of criminal cartels to be smuggled into the country. This administration can’t find over 300,000. Where’s the tears for them?” Homan asked.
Trump’s Border Czar Tom Homan sends message to Selena Gomez after her viral crying video over the deportation of illegal aliens:
“No apologies.”
— Oli London (@OliLondonTV) January 28, 2025
While the White House video has garnered strong reactions, other public figures have stepped in to support Gomez.
Frequent Trump foe, model Chrissy Teigen, showed her solidarity for “The Only Murders in the Building” actress, sharing on social media, “Having empathy is now something gross and weird. We love you, @selenagomez, and boy does the White House have a lot of time on their hands for the dumbest shit ever.”
“You want cheaper eggs? Too bad!” she added. “Too many people to roast online. Maybe later.”
Meanwhile, singer Joy Villa defended Trump’s immigration policies while walking the red carpet at the Grammy’s on Sunday.
"I love to see rapists, human traffickers deported," says Joy Villa on the carpet at the #GRAMMYs pic.twitter.com/OxCCYiY7kU
— The Hollywood Reporter (@THR) February 2, 2025
“I think that the ones that are being deported should be deported,” she told The Hollywood Reporter. “I’m a Latina. My family came to this country legally. I love to see rapists, human traffickers deported.”
“I don’t want to see them here. I want us to be free, for all colors, for all people. That’s what makes America great again,” she explained to the outlet.
“So we can create, so we can live. As an artist, as a musician, I want to be able to walk at night and not think that I’m going to get killed by an illegal alien,” Villa added. “So those are the people getting deported, those are the people that should get deported.”