Netizens accuse Bella Poarch of Zionism, call for boycott of ENHYPEN collab
By Ryan General
November 6, 2023
TikTok star Bella Poarch is facing a social media storm after being accused of Zionism, leading to calls for a boycott of her upcoming collaboration with the K-pop group ENHYPEN.
What sparked the outrage: The Filipino American influencer found herself at the center of a social media storm following a viral screenshot of a comment on her Instagram. A commenter asked Poarch, “Do you love Israel?”, to which she replied affirmatively with a “yes” and a pleading face emoji. That response triggered a barrage of accusations, including of her being a Zionist.
What’s Zionism?: A Zionist is a person who supports the establishment of a Jewish homeland in the region of historic Israel, which includes modern-day Israel and the Palestinian territories. The term Zionism is primarily associated with the Jewish nationalist and political movement that emerged in the late 19th century and played a crucial role in the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948.
Calls for a boycott: The accusations against Poarch emerged in light of her upcoming collaboration with ENHYPEN, who recently unveiled their fifth mini-album, “Orange Blood.” Set to release on Nov. 17, the album features a track titled “Sweet Venom,” in which Poarch is a guest artist.
A number of users expressed their displeasure and called for a boycott of the song with Poarch, urging fellow fans to instead listen to the version without her. Others even pointed to Bella’s past actions, including getting a controversial rising sun tattoo in 2020.
“A reminder that bella poarch is a zionist with a rising sun tattoo,” a commenter wrote on X, sharing screenshots of her comment and images of her rising sun tattoo.
“Just to be clear let’s also just not engage with any enha content that is filmed with bella poarch,” another fan shared. “I’m sure there’ll be lots of other content we can enjoy and like just please avoid everything with her in it.”
Another commented: “It’s very easy for you guys, do NOT listen to the version with bella poarch and instead focus on the version without her! thats how easy it is to not give money to a zionist and terrible person please you guys its the least anyone can do.”
Coming to her defense: Some fans defended the social media entertainer, with some arguing that the allegations of Zionism were unwarranted and that it was hypocritical to hold her accountable for a comment about Israel. Regarding her tattoo controversy, other fans emphasized that she had already apologized for the incident and that her comment in question was made years ago.
“I think this is too much for sth she said in 2021 and even that doesn’t really confirm anything?” a fan wrote in response to the criticisms. “But if there’s anything else she said or did that confirms the suspicion please let us know otherwise I don’t think it’s reasonable to not stream the song.”
“Idk why kpop stans trying to cancel Bella Poarch because of this screenshot from 2020 (or 2021?)?” another pointed out. “Like c’mon, we know what’s happening between Israel and Palestine but let’s not call someone zionist because they said they ‘love’ Israel (before), she didn’t even tell other ppl.”
Boycott’s impact: As of this writing, neither Poarch nor ENHYPEN has released a statement addressing the controversy. It remains to be seen how the accusations will impact the artists’ collaboration, as well as the reception of their upcoming album, “Orange Blood,” within their global fanbase.
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