Huda Kattan, billionaire founder of Huda Beauty, has been serving more than glam; she’s been spreading antisemitic conspiracy theories to millions.
She claimed Israel was “behind” World War I, World War II, 9/11, and Hamas’ October 7 massacre – despite Israel not even existing during the first two. Her language about “evil systems” controlling the world for centuries is a thinly veiled reference to Jews.
It took weeks of public outrage before Sephora announced it would review its ties to her. When she finally addressed the backlash, her nearly seven-minute “apology” was defensive and dismissive, insisting her words were “misconstrued.” They weren’t.
Mainstream coverage only picked up the story when there was a threat to her brand and some outlets even sanitized her image, treating it like celebrity gossip rather than dangerous hate speech.
Influencers with massive reach normalizing antisemitic tropes pose a real threat. When the media downplays it, that danger only grows. What happens online doesn’t stay there. It shapes attitudes and fuels prejudice in the real world.
