image

Last Friday a certain piece of “news” broke online. I don’t really consider most stuff related to celebrities news because mostly it is entertainment, not really useful information. Unless someone does something worth appreciating that involves their work, but not the kind of activities where they break up with someone or post a selfie with a “deep” message attached on social media.

The information mentioned before, that came out on Friday, was about Selena Gomez. Do a short brainstorming session and think about what you know about Selena Gomez and, generally, where you got that information from. All this, considering you are not a hardcore fan, in which case you know everything about her. My personal information is limited to this: she’s a former Disney star that sings, acts, had a relationship with Justin Bieber that certain publications try to revive every time either one of them posts something on social media that might hint at romance but is ambiguous. Selena has been bullied a lot about her weight recently by certain media outlets. You know how it’s done, whenever a lady shows some curves she is automatically fat in the eyes of gossip writers and Internet haters.

If you would like to know, she also does charity work and is a UNICEF ambassador. As far as I can remember she was never involved in scandals regarding reckless behavior as you might hear about other young stars. But, as I read recently, seems like in 2013 she spent two weeks at a treatment center specialized in treating addiction and trauma in young people. This led to her cancelling certain concerts as part of the tour she was doing at that time and also meant that, since there was no specific information as to why she was there, people started saying that she is there for either alcohol addiction or drug addiction. Because why could there be any other possibility than those two? I think other possibilities wouldn’t have created such a stir as did the two I mentioned before.

Then came Friday the 9th of October and by means of a Billboard interview, Selena said that, actually, she was there receiving treatment for Lupus. I would hope those people who wrote mean things about her then would feel at least a bit guilty now, but then again it is not like I have proper reasons to believe they are going to write differently, in a manner that actually does not involve creating false, mean information or preying on people’s vulnerabilities.

What is Lupus you might ask? Well if you watched House you certainly remember his “It’s not Lupus.” famous quote and you might also smile at the thought of it. But the condition itself is not exactly something to smile about. Lupus is an autoimmune disorder: that means that your own body cannot differentiate between healthy tissue and elements that actually make you sick, so it ends up attacking also the healthy parts of your body: “Lupus is a complex and poorly understood condition that affects many parts of the body and causes symptoms ranging from mild to life-threatening.” More details here and here.

Even though the record was set straight, I figure people will still have no consideration and will keep preying on her like they do with other celebrities with no regard to common sense or respect. I am amazed sometimes how people are so resilient and still find pleasure in their job, strive to do their best and be good role models for their target audience while certain publications still write horribly about them: “[Selena] has been discussing the gossip sites (“Hollywood Life is the worst”) that hound her almost daily. “I’m so f—ing nice to everybody, and everyone is so vile to me. I’ve been working since I was 7. I’ve been a UNICEF ambassador since I was 17. It’s so disappointing that I’ve become a tabloid story. It took away everything I loved about this business.” (Billboard interview)

Selena already lives her life in the public eye because paparazzi are after her and rumours are started by gossip sites. Just imagine also having to deal with health issues while people look at you closely and wait for the next occasion to judge you or your actions. If she wasn’t already, she now might very well be a role model for her fans considering how she handled all her issues and the gossip articles about her and still she has the strength and confidence to carry on with doing what she does best and she’s doing it with such passion and dedication.

How do you feel about this situation? Are you a fan of Selena’s?