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Author Reza Aslan Defends The Right Of Celebrities To Speak Out About Gaza

Reza Aslan Defends Celebrities Speaking Out About Gaza
Rahel Gebreyes
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From Rihanna to Penelope Cruz to Madonna, celebrities have taken to social media to weigh in on the ever-escalating conflict in Gaza. And according to author Reza Aslan, that is perfectly fine.

In a HuffPost Live interview with host Caroline Modarressy-Tehrani on Thursday, Aslan weighed in on a recent Jezebel article that advised celebrities to “STFU” about the conflict.

“Why wouldn’t celebrities talk out about what’s going on? I don’t understand -- because they’re on TV and they make money [by] making movies their opinions are no longer valid?” he questioned. “That’s an unsophisticated and frankly silly view for Jezebel to have.”

Aslan also warned that Jezebel’s critique could prevent others from speaking out for fear of the “backlash that inevitably comes when a celebrity talks about political issues.”

Despite the possibility of repercussions, the author urged newsmakers and celebrities with large followings to “make their voices heard.”

“What we need more than ever right now is people who do have a much broader circle, a much broader audience to speak out and get off the fence,” he said. “There is no more room for sitting on the fence in a conflict like this...When you have children being killed by the dozen in their sleep...there is no more neutrality in a conflict like this.”

Watch the full HuffPost Live conversation here.

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Gaza
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Smoke and fire from the explosion of an Israeli strike rise over Gaza City, Tuesday, July 22, 2014, as Israeli airstrikes pummeled a wide range of locations along the coastal area and diplomatic efforts intensified to end the two-week war. (AP Photo/Hatem Moussa) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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Smoke and fire from the explosion of an Israeli strike rise over Gaza City, Tuesday, July 22, 2014. Israeli airstrikes hit a wide range of locations along the coastal area of the Gaza Strip as diplomatic efforts intensified to end the two week war that has killed hundreds of Palestinians and dozens of Israelis. (AP Photo/Hatem Moussa) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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Smoke from an Israeli strike rises over Gaza City, Tuesday, July 22, 2014. Israeli airstrikes hit a wide range of locations along the coastal area of the Gaza Strip as diplomatic efforts intensified to end the two week war that has killed hundreds of Palestinians and dozens of Israelis. (AP Photo/Hatem Moussa) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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Smoke from an Israeli strike rises over Gaza City, Tuesday, July 22, 2014. Israeli airstrikes hit a wide range of locations along the coastal area of the Gaza Strip as diplomatic efforts intensified to end the two week war that has killed hundreds of Palestinians and dozens of Israelis. (AP Photo/Hatem Moussa) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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General view of the Al Farouk mosque destroyed by an overnight Israeli strike, in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, Tuesday, July 22, 2014. Israeli airstrikes pummeled a wide range of locations along the coastal area and diplomatic efforts intensified to end the two-week war that has killed hundreds of Palestinians and dozens of Israelis. (AP Photo/Eyad Baba) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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An Israeli tank sits in a field as heavy smoke rises from the Gaza Strip Tuesday, July 22, 2014. Israeli airstrikes pummeled a wide range of locations in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday as the U.N. chief and the U.S. secretary of state began an intensive effort to end more than two weeks of fighting that has killed hundreds of Palestinians and tens of Israelis. (AP Photo/Tsafrir Abayov) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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Smoke from Israeli strikes rises over Gaza City, in the Gaza Strip, Tuesday, July 22, 2014. A police spokesman said Israeli aircraft have hit dozens of targets in the Gaza Strip, including the home of the late leader of Hamas' military wing, several mosques and a football stadium. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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Smoke and debris from an Israeli strike rise over Gaza City, Tuesday, July 22, 2014, as Israeli airstrikes pummeled a wide range of locations along the coastal area and diplomatic efforts intensified to end the two-week war. (AP Photo/Hatem Moussa) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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Smoke and debris from an Israeli strike rise over Gaza City, Tuesday, July 22, 2014, as Israeli airstrikes pummeled a wide range of locations along the coastal area and diplomatic efforts intensified to end the two-week war. (AP Photo/Hatem Moussa) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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Palestinian children inspect the Al Farouk mosque destroyed by an overnight Israeli strike, in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, Tuesday, July 22, 2014. Israeli airstrikes pummeled a wide range of locations along the coastal area and diplomatic efforts intensified to end the two-week war that has killed hundreds of Palestinians and dozens of Israelis. (AP Photo/Eyad Baba) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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Palestinians inspect the damage of the Al-Shalam (Peace) tower, destroyed by an overnight Israeli strike, in Gaza City, Tuesday, July 22, 2014. A high-level attempt by the U.N. chief and the U.S. secretary of state to end deadly Israel-Hamas fighting was off to a rough start Monday: Gaza's Hamas rulers signaled they won't agree to an unconditional cease-fire, Israel's prime minister said he'll do whatever is necessary to keep Israelis safe from Hamas attacks. Gaza health officials say hundreds Palestinians have died since the beginning of Israelâs campaign in the Gaza Strip since the ground operation began Thursday. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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A Palestinian man walks past the Al Aqsa Martyrs mosque, destroyed by an overnight Israeli strike, in Gaza City, Tuesday, July 22, 2014. Israel bombed five mosques, a sports stadium and the home of the late Hamas military chief across the Gaza Strip early on Tuesday, a Gaza police official said, as the U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon and the U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry launched a high-level effort to end two weeks of deadly fighting. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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A Palestinian man inspects the Al Aqsa Martyrs mosque destroyed by an overnight Israeli strike, in Gaza City, Tuesday, July 22, 2014. Israel bombed five mosques, a sports stadium and the home of the late Hamas military chief across the Gaza Strip early on Tuesday, a Gaza police official said, as the U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon and the U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry launched a high-level effort to end two weeks of deadly fighting. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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Smoke rises as flames spread across buildings after Israeli strikes in the Shijaiyah neighborhood in Gaza City, Tuesday, July 22, 2014. A high-level attempt by the U.N. chief and the U.S. secretary of state to end deadly Israel-Hamas fighting was off to a rough start Monday: Gaza's Hamas rulers signaled they won't agree to an unconditional cease-fire, Israel's prime minister said he'll do whatever is necessary to keep Israelis safe from Hamas attacks. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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Damage can be seen at Al Aqsa Martyrs mosque in Gaza City after an Israeli strike, Tuesday, July 22, 2014. A police spokesman said Israeli aircraft have hit dozens of targets in the Gaza Strip, including the home of the late leader of Hamas' military wing, sevenral mosques and a football stadium. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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Smoke from Israeli strikes rises over Gaza City, in the Gaza Strip, Tuesday, July 22, 2014. A police spokesman said Israeli aircraft have hit dozens of targets in the Gaza Strip, including the home of the late leader of Hamas' military wing, sevenral mosques and a football stadium. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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Flames spread across buildings after Israeli strikes in the Shijaiyah neighbourhood in Gaza City, Tuesday, July 22, 2014. A high-level attempt by the U.N. chief and the U.S. secretary of state to end deadly Israel-Hamas fighting was off to a rough start Monday: Gaza's Hamas rulers signaled they won't agree to an unconditional cease-fire, Israel's prime minister said he'll do whatever is necessary to keep Israelis safe from Hamas attacks. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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Smoke rises as flames spread across buildings after Israeli strikes in the Shijaiyah neighborhood in Gaza City, Tuesday, July 22, 2014. A high-level attempt by the U.N. chief and the U.S. secretary of state to end deadly Israel-Hamas fighting was off to a rough start Monday: Gaza's Hamas rulers signaled they won't agree to an unconditional cease-fire, Israel's prime minister said he'll do whatever is necessary to keep Israelis safe from Hamas attacks and the overall Palestinian death toll surpassed 560. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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Smoke from an Israeli strike rises over Gaza City, Tuesday, July 22, 2014. A police spokesman said Israeli aircraft have hit dozens of targets in the Gaza Strip, including the home of the late leader of Hamas' military wing, several mosques and a football stadium. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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A picture taken from the southern Israeli Gaza border shows smoke billowing from the coastal Palestinian enclave during shelling by the Israeli army on July 22, 2014. UN chief Ban Ki-moon urged Israel and the Palestinians to stop the bloodshed in Gaza as he sought to broker an end to a fortnight of deadly violence. AFP PHOTO /MENAHEM KAHANA (Photo credit should read MENAHEM KAHANA/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:MENAHEM KAHANA via Getty Images)
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A picture taken from the southern Israeli Gaza border shows smoke billowing from the coastal Palestinian enclave during shelling by the Israeli army on July 22, 2014. UN chief Ban Ki-moon urged Israel and the Palestinians to stop the bloodshed in Gaza as he sought to broker an end to a fortnight of deadly violence. AFP PHOTO /MENAHEM KAHANA (Photo credit should read MENAHEM KAHANA/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:MENAHEM KAHANA via Getty Images)
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An Israeli Apache attack helicopter fires a missile over the Gaza Strip as seen from Israel's border with Gaza, on July 22, 2014. The UN chief and Washington's top diplomat are holding a flurry of meetings in Cairo to push for an end to two weeks of violence in Gaza that has killed so far 585 Palestinians. AFP PHOTO / JACK GUEZ (Photo credit should read JACK GUEZ/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:JACK GUEZ via Getty Images)
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An Israeli Apache attack helicopter fires a missile over the Gaza Strip as seen from Israel's border with Gaza, on July 22, 2014. The UN chief and Washington's top diplomat are holding a flurry of meetings in Cairo to push for an end to two weeks of violence in Gaza that has killed so far 585 Palestinians. AFP PHOTO / JACK GUEZ (Photo credit should read JACK GUEZ/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:JACK GUEZ via Getty Images)
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A picture taken from the southern Israeli Gaza border shows smoke billowing from the coastal Palestinian enclave following an Israeli air strike on Gaza City on July 22, 2014. The UN chief and Washington's top diplomat are holding a flurry of meetings in Cairo to push for an end to two weeks of violence in Gaza that has killed so far 585 Palestinians. AFP PHOTO / JACK GUEZ (Photo credit should read JACK GUEZ/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:JACK GUEZ via Getty Images)
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A picture taken from the southern Israeli Gaza border shows smoke billowing from the coastal Palestinian enclave following Israeli air strikes on Gaza City on July 22, 2014. The UN chief and Washington's top diplomat are holding a flurry of meetings in Cairo to push for an end to two weeks of violence in Gaza that has killed so far 585 Palestinians. AFP PHOTO / JACK GUEZ (Photo credit should read JACK GUEZ/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:JACK GUEZ via Getty Images)
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A picture taken from the southern Israeli Gaza border shows smoke billowing from the coastal Palestinian enclave during shelling by the Israeli army on July 22, 2014. The UN chief and Washington's top diplomat are holding a flurry of meetings in Cairo to push for an end to two weeks of violence in Gaza that has killed so far 585 Palestinians. AFP PHOTO / JACK GUEZ (Photo credit should read JACK GUEZ/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:JACK GUEZ via Getty Images)
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A picture taken from the southern Israeli Gaza border shows smoke billowing from the coastal Palestinian enclave during shelling by the Israeli army on July 22, 2014. The UN chief and Washington's top diplomat are holding a flurry of meetings in Cairo to push for an end to two weeks of violence in Gaza that has killed so far 585 Palestinians. AFP PHOTO / JACK GUEZ (Photo credit should read JACK GUEZ/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:JACK GUEZ via Getty Images)
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A picture taken from the southern Israeli Gaza border shows smoke billowing from the coastal Palestinian enclave during shelling by the Israeli army on July 22, 2014. The UN chief and Washington's top diplomat are holding a flurry of meetings in Cairo to push for an end to two weeks of violence in Gaza that has killed so far 585 Palestinians. AFP PHOTO / JACK GUEZ (Photo credit should read JACK GUEZ/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:JACK GUEZ via Getty Images)
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A picture taken from the southern Israeli Gaza border shows smoke billowing from the coastal Palestinian enclave during shelling by the Israeli army on July 22, 2014. The UN chief and Washington's top diplomat are holding a flurry of meetings in Cairo to push for an end to two weeks of violence in Gaza that has killed so far 585 Palestinians. AFP PHOTO / JACK GUEZ (Photo credit should read JACK GUEZ/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:JACK GUEZ via Getty Images)
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An Israeli Merkava tank rolls on the Israeli side of the border with the Gaza Strip, on July 22 , 2014, as smoke billows from the coastal Palestinian enclave following an Israeli army ground operation to destroy tunnels reportedly used by Palestinian militants from the Gaza Strip to enter Israel. The UN chief and Washington's top diplomat are holding a flurry of meetings in Cairo to push for an end to two weeks of violence in Gaza that has killed sp far 585 Palestinians. AFP PHOTO / JACK GUEZ (Photo credit should read JACK GUEZ/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:JACK GUEZ via Getty Images)
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YAHUD, ISRAEL - JULY 22: (ISRAEL OUT) An Israeli woman inspects an Israeli home allegedly hit by a Hamas rocket on July 22, 2014 in Yahud south to Tel Aviv, Israel. As operation 'Protective Edge' goes into it's third week, the death toll continues to mount, including 27 Israeli soldiers and over 500 people in Gaza, the vast majority of whom are civilians. (Photo by Lior Mizrahi/Getty Images) (credit:Lior Mizrahi via Getty Images)
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A general view of the remains of a mosque, following an overnight Israeli military strike, on July 22, 2014, in Rafah the southern Gaza Strip. UN chief Ban Ki-moon and US Secretary of State John Kerry are in Cairo in a bid to broker a truce between Israel and Hamas after two weeks of fighting which has left over 570 Palestinians dead. AFP PHOTO/ SAID KHATIB (Photo credit should read SAID KHATIB/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:SAID KHATIB via Getty Images)
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A Palestinian boy sweeps the ground outside a destroyed mosque, following an overnight Israeli military strike, on July 22, 2014, in Rafah the southern Gaza Strip. UN chief Ban Ki-moon and US Secretary of State John Kerry are in Cairo in a bid to broker a truce between Israel and Hamas after two weeks of fighting which has left over 570 Palestinians dead. AFP PHOTO/ SAID KHATIB (Photo credit should read SAID KHATIB/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:SAID KHATIB via Getty Images)
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Palestinians gather outside a partly destroyed mosque, following an overnight Israeli military strike, on July 22, 2014 in Rafah the southern Gaza Strip. UN chief Ban Ki-moon and US Secretary of State John Kerry are in Cairo in a bid to broker a truce between Israel and Hamas after two weeks of fighting which has left over 570 Palestinians dead. AFP PHOTO/ SAID KHATIB (Photo credit should read SAID KHATIB/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:SAID KHATIB via Getty Images)
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A Palestinian man inspects the rubble of a destroyed store located on the ground floor of a building hit by an Israeli air strike on July 22, 2014 in Gaza city. UN chief Ban Ki-moon and US Secretary of State John Kerry are in Cairo today in a bid to broker a truce between Israel and Hamas after two weeks of fighting which has left over 570 Palestinians dead. AFP PHOTO / MAHMUD HAMS (Photo credit should read MAHMUD HAMS/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:MAHMUD HAMS via Getty Images)
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