Hey Justin, WYA?
Image Courtesy: PinterestThe ongoing feud, propagated by the internet, between Selena Gomez and Hailey Bieber has reached new heights for the better part of a month now. With a large mass of TikTok users declaring themselves to be either Team Selena or Team Hailey (and encouraging their S.O.’s to do the same in a series of “funny” videos), a division wider than ever has been created. Through the two women following each other on Instagram, a ceasefire of sorts was reached a few days ago. However, I am not too optimistic that this small “win” will prevent social media users from continuing to find new ways to pit them against one another.
The primary reason for this? The lack of discourse regarding Justin Bieber’s role in the matter.
TikTok is saturated with comparisons of Justin with his ex Selena and Justin with his wife Hailey. A common thread among users who claim to be Selena supporters is to show how much “better” Justin treated her through a series of images and video clips captured by paparazzi. Content displaying Justin abandoning Hailey in crowds or closing car doors while she is still in them are used as ammunition against her.
The fact that Justin still has a tattoo of Selena is not a sign that the two are destined to be with each other. Rather, it is a poor reflection of him as a husband.
There is a shocking lack of people criticizing Justin for his behavior. Few are concerned with why a man thinks it is appropriate to treat his partner in this manner. They are excited by Hailey’s humiliation and use it to support a narrative that the instigator of it belongs with Selena instead.
However, any “fan” that actually cares about Selena Gomez would know of the emotional turmoil that accompanied her infamous relationship with Bieber. One need look no further than interviews or the lyrics of certain songs to discover that the on-again-off-again relationship was laced with cheating and emotional abuse. His charted actions used to poke fun at his current wife indicate a certain lack of growth in his own character. With both of these realities in mind, why would a Selena supporter ever want her to be with someone capable of treating his significant other in such a way?
Image Courtesy: Pinterest
Image Courtesy: PinterestNo one wants to mention the fact that perhaps Hailey’s actions are, in part, charged by deeply-rooted insecurities caused by her husband’s past and current conduct. For whatever reason, it is more “fun” to remove his agency in the way we perceive women. It is more fun to make Hailey a villain who is obsessed with Selena or Selena a hater who will never measure up to Hailey.
Aside from the public’s neglect of discussion of Justin, he has also seemingly neglected the matter himself. An occasional paragraph on his Instagram story nods to the fact that he does want the hatred being spewed at the two to cease. However, he seemed more passionate in his verbiage about an unapproved Bieber merch collection that launched at H&M not too long ago than this feud. Instead, it is Gomez who is constantly calling for kindness toward Hailey from her fans.
If we want to see a true end to this classic woman v. woman scenario, we all need to begin acknowledging the long history of the man’s role in shaping it. Justin — it’s time to step up.
Strike Out,
Victoria Dominesey
Editor: Shane Stanton
University of Notre Dame
