American-Palestinian supermodel Bella Hadid is one of the most vocal celebrities who have stepped forward to highlight Israel’s ongoing atrocities in Palestine.
Hadid has stood in solidarity with her people at many pro-Palestine protests and has been vocal about the cause on Instagram.
However, the 25-year-old’s activism resulted in professional setbacks and she has revealed that she had lost many modeling gigs because of her support of Palestine.
In an episode of the Rep podcast hosted by journalist Noor Tagouri, Bella disclosed that she has lost modelling opportunities because of her views but is willing to accept professional losses as long as it means she can continue her support for Palestine.
Reflecting on her early years, Hadid expressed her regrets of feeling separated from her Palestinian roots and that she was “never able to see myself in anything” anymore.
Recalling facing racism, and name-calling as a teenager, she added “For so long, I was missing that part of me, and it made me really, really sad and lonely.”
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“I would have loved to grow up and be with my dad every day, studying and really being able to practise, just in general being able to live in a Muslim culture. But I wasn’t given that,” the model said.
Hadid’s friendship with Ramy Youssef has helped her explore some of the subtleties of her faith too. “There was one time when Ramy came over during Ramazan and allowed me to pray with him,” recalled Hadid.
“I realised that I’m not on this earth to be a model,” she said. “I’m so lucky and blessed that I’m in a position where I can speak out the way that I do. And really, the downfall is what? That I lose my job?”, she concluded.
On the work front, Hadid will be seen making her small screen debut in the third season of the Emmy-nominated dark comedy series Ramy.
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