Huda Beauty Founder Huda Kattan Responds to Backlash Over Anti-Israel Scandal
'It's no secret that I have been speaking out about Palestine for quite some time, and that happened from me learning about the Palestinian cause, feeling really frustrated seeing so much injustice happening to the people of Palestine,' Kattan, 41, said in a Friday, August 8, video shared via TikTok. 'Things that I don't see how can be justified. As things escalated and the more that I learned, I've always tried to use my voice.'
Kattan explained that, as an influencer, she believes that she has 'a responsibility' to speak out 'on behalf of anything [she thinks] is wrong.'
'I am just so tired of seeing children starve, people maimed, living in tents and being bombed while living in tents while they're just trying to survive the already excruciating and inhabitable conditions that they're living in,' the beauty blogger said. 'In order to silence you from speaking out, to silence me, they do what they always do. They twist your words, label you an antisemite and, right now, I'm experiencing all of that.'
Sephora Responds to Huda Beauty's Huda Kattan's Anti-Israel Scandal: 'We Are Actively Reviewing'
Kattan has shared her support for Palestine in a number of social media videos earlier this summer. In one TikTok video posted in July, she falsely claimed that Israel was responsible for World War I, World War II, the September 11 terrorist attacks and Hamas' attack on Israel in October 2024.
As a result, a number of social media users implored Sephora to stop stocking Kattan's beauty products because of her alleged antisemitic beliefs. (The cosmetics store noted in a statement that it's currently investigating the situation and does not support any hate.)
'I would never condone any hate of any kind,' she said on Friday, denying the allegations. 'That, of course, includes Jewish hate. The fact that I even have to say that is so weird to me because it's so obvious.'
Huda Kattan Calls for Change in the Beauty Industry: Stop Asking for Permission to Feel Empowered
Kattan further said that her since-deleted video expressed 'critical views of Israel' but nothing regarding individuals of Jewish faith or 'insinuated' anything about them.
'I would never talk about any people because I stand against hate and discrimination,' she said. 'The video was misinterpreted and completely misused. Words were put in my mouth [that] I never even mentioned in the video. The video is not up anymore. … I chose to remove it because I saw a lot of people taking what I said out of context, and I didn't want that conversation happening.'
She added, 'The words were twisted so badly that the narrative came out, which I was so disappointed in, that, essentially, I was not recognizing the Holocaust, or I was basically saying that Jews created the Holocaust. [It] was such a weird thing to even say. Why would I say that? It doesn't even make sense.'
According to Kattan, learning about the Holocaust in school affected her so much that she pledged to speak out in any similar situations moving forward.
'I feel compelled as a human to speak out for other human beings,' Kattan said. 'I don't think there's anything wrong with that. I also don't think it's fair that you can't criticize the actions of Israel without being mislabeled. Not being able to criticize the actions of Israel is not only creating antisemitism, but I would argue it is a form of antisemitism itself.'
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