Kylie Jenner — whose net worth is around $700 million, according to Forbes — is facing backlash after encouraging fans to donate to an online fundraiser for her friend, makeup artist Samuel Rauda.
"May God watch over you and protect you @makeupbysamuel," Kylie wrote on her Instagram Story last week (per JustJared). "Everyone take a moment to say a prayer for Sam who got into an accident this past weekend. And swipe up to visit his families go fund me."
According to the GoFundMe and posts from friends, Samuel recently underwent brain surgery after he was reportedly thrown from a moving vehicle. The accident caused significant injuries to his brain, as well internal bleeding. His loved ones are hoping to raise $120,000 to offset the cost of his medical care.
By Sunday, March 21, the GoFundMe had raised more than $97,000. And while some of Kylie's fans noted she contributed $5,000 to the cause, many Twitter users seemed keen on calling out the Kylie Cosmetics founder for expecting others to fork over funds she could probably cover herself.
Referencing the color-coordinated luxury handbag collection Kylie showed off on Instagram last year, one user suggested the reality star "open up one of her Birkins and stop asking us poor folk to donate to her makeup artist's gofundme."
(Fun fact: Kylie's Birkins, along with bags from Chanel and more high-end fashion houses, live in their very own room-sized closet in her home and were recently valued at six figures.)
Others invoked a 2019 Forbes report claiming Kylie was worth $1 billion after selling a majority stake of her cosmetics company to beauty giant Coty.
"She only has over a billion dollars herself…so she needs YOUR money. Unbelievable!" one person griped on Twitter.
"The fact that Kylie Jenner has the audacity to ask for donations for her friends/makeup artists emergency surgery (60,000) while she's worth a whole BILLION is very character telling," another user tweeted.
To be fair, Kylie is not a billionaire, as we learned in 2020.
Last spring, Forbes reported its previous claim the beauty mogul was on track to become the world's youngest self-made billionaire was off-base. The outlet went on to allege the star had exaggerated the value of her companies and assets. Kylie denied the claim.
In addition to Kylie, Samuel's worked with celebs including Khloe Kardashian, Chrissy Teigen and Bella Thorne.