Ms Rachel has pledged $1m to the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund, matching the donation given by rapper Macklemore after he was removed from Ed Sheeran’s US tour due to his outspoken support against the Israeli war on Gaza.
The YouTube star and educator, whose full name is Rachel Griffin Accurso, announced the donation in an Instagram post on Thursday.
“I’ll match Macklemore’s donation and I invite every wealthy white celebrity to match it and speak out against the genocide in Gaza,” she wrote.
“Over 20,000 precious Palestinian children have been killed and children continue to be killed every day,” she added. “We’ve a moral obligation to use our privilege and platforms to protect children and human rights.”
Accurso became a global ambassador for the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund in 2025 after supporting its fundraising efforts. She has used her platforms to advocate for Palestinian children, met a young survivor of the war named Rahaf, and raised money for children affected by conflict through a 2024 Save the Children fundraiser.
Macklemore, whose real name is Benjamin Haggerty, responded to Accurso’s post: “Wow. Love you so much.”
The “Thrift Shop” singer announced on Wednesday that he would donate $1m in net earnings from his appearances on Sheeran’s tour to organisations aiding Palestinians.
“With everything that has happened over the last 48 hours, I want to bring the conversation back to where it belongs,” he wrote in his Instagram statement, “to the Palestinian people who are still being killed, still living under military occupation, and still fighting for their freedom.”
“Whatever we disagree about, perhaps we can agree on this,” he added, “Palestinian lives are worth protecting.”
The rapper was removed from Sheeran’s tour after performing at New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium on 4 and 5 September. During his performances, he spoke about the Israeli war on Gaza, called for a “Free Palestine”, and performed his protest song “Hind’s Hall”.
Macklemore said later that his removal was orchestrated by New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft.
Kraft confirmed that he opposed Macklemore performing at Gillette Stadium, which his company owns, because of his “recent actions, material shared from the stage during Ed Sheeran's shows in New Jersey, and a broader history of antisemitic rhetoric and imagery that we believe has been deeply offensive and hurtful to the Jewish community”.
Sheeran said in a statement posted to Instagram that Macklemore “coming off tour was the promoter's decision, it was not mine”.
“Macklemore's contract for the tour was with the promoter, not me. I am not complicit. I’ve my personal views on this devastating conflict,” he wrote, referring to the Israeli war on Gaza.
“Just because I choose not to speak publicly, it doesn't mean I don't have them, and it doesn't mean I don't care. Nor does it mean I don't support causes in my own, personal way.”
All other supporting acts on Sheeran’s tour quit after Macklemore was dropped. Danish band Lukas Graham, Irish singer Aaron Rowe, American singer Finneas, and Irish folk band Beoga all made their announcements roughly within an hour of each other on Tuesday.
Macklemore defended what he had said and re-iterated his support for the Palestinian cause. “A big part of the reason why I wanted to do this tour in the first place is so I could stand up in stadiums like this and say two words that are very near and dear to my heart: Free Palestine,” he said.
“I said, ‘Free Palestine!’ I want those words to be loud and clear, so that people all the way in Gaza to the occupied West Bank know that we have not forgotten about them.”
Kraft also said that he and Sheeran would each donate $2m towards humanitarian aid in the region and that the “Shape of You” singer had approached him about the contribution before Macklemore publicly challenged him to match the rapper’s donation.
Speculation about whether the controversy around Macklemore’s removal could lead to Sheeran cancelling the rest of his US tour is growing.
British musician Billy Bragg said on Wednesday that Sheeran should abandon his remaining dates rather than let “billionaires decide what can and cannot be said at gigs”.
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