Isabel Veloso died on Jan. 10 after a four-year battle with Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
Rachel Accurso, better known as children's YouTuber Ms. Rachel, is continuing to be a voice for the children of Gaza.
On November 4, Accurso was honored at the Glamour Women of the Year 2025 Awards as one of the women of the year for her activism.
When choosing what to wear on the red carpet, Accurso chose to bring the art of the children of Gaza with her for all to see.
She wore an upcycled dress that she had custom-embroidered with drawings that were made by children from Gaza.
“My love and care for children doesn’t stop at my own children,” she told Glamour in an October interview. “It doesn’t stop at the children in our country. It embraces every child of the world. And I don’t think that our love should end at religion or skin color or where people are born. I think that that’s not what’s right, in my soul…. Children should have human rights, and children do have human rights. To me, that grown-ups are failing children and not following those guidelines, it’s so upsetting.”
Accurso has been one of the loudest public figures in the United States opposing the ongoing human rights abuses in Gaza and advocating for children there.
With over 17 million subscribers on YouTube and over 4 million followers on Instagram, Accurso knows that having a platform as Ms. Rachel comes with the ability to positively influence others.
“I’m always thinking about kids in need,” she continued in her Glamour interview. “I have these briefings where I learn what it’s like to be a kid in the hardest places. I don’t think having a platform comes with negatives. One of the positives is being able to highlight issues and get a message to a bigger audience. I think it’s a big responsibility that should be used as much as possible.”
The dress is just one way that Accurso has been bringing attention to the suffering of children in Gaza over the year and a half since she first spoke out.
Accurso has also made countless awareness posts for her followers, amplifying the voices of children in Gaza, and has conducted fundraising for Save the Children.
In a recent interview on CBS Sunday Morning, Accurso was asked if she was worried that speaking out for children in Gaza would "hurt her business" as Ms. Rachel.
"I could care less. I have very strong morals and values. Write articles, attack me. I know who I am; God knows who I am. I'm here to serve children, and I will not back down," she responded, standing firm.
