Melissa Barrera’s talent agency and management company both reportedly considered firing her after she shared a fundraiser for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East on Instagram.
According to Variety, her posts encouraging donations to a fundraiser to benefit “martyrs in Gaza and the West Bank” prompted heated internal debate and were viewed as the “final straw.” Sources claim that management company Sugar23 was preparing to drop Barrera, while agency WME consulted with outside advisors about how to fire her without sparking backlash.
On Thursday, both companies reportedly changed course and decided to keep Melissa Barrera as a client for now. WME and Sugar23 did not immediately respond to Vulture’s request for comment.
UNRWA has played a crucial role in distributing international aid in Gaza. But the U.S. and several other donor countries recently paused funding to the agency after the Israeli government alleged that a dozen UNRWA employees were involved in the Hamas attacks on October 7.
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The U.N. announced that it had terminated nine individuals, and asked that thousands of workers providing humanitarian aid not be punished for the alleged actions of some. According to Time magazine, the UNRWA employs 30,000 people, with 13,000 based in Gaza.
Barrera, who was fired from Scream VII after making several pro-Palestine posts and recently protested in support of Palestine at Sundance, created her fundraiser a day after the U.S. announced it was temporarily freezing funds to the UNRWA.
“Guess it’s always up to the people. Made a fundraiser with @unrwa, donate what you can and share ❤️,” Barrera wrote in an Instagram Story.
She acknowledged in another Story that “Apparently some people are mad that I’m sharing this fundraiser.” As of publication time, the fundraiser link remains in her Instagram bio and has raised more than $60,000.
