It will be pretty difficult to deny that Kanye West who recently turned Ye, is a music, entrepreneurial, and marketing genius. Of course, he wouldn’t have become a billionaire if that wasn’t the case, but beyond all that, we cannot look away from the fact that he is suffering from severe mental illness or perhaps is under some kind of spell that is determined to diminish whatever heights he may have attained.
Kanye is an antisemite who has never hidden his hate for the Jewish race and is well-known for his nonchalance about racism against blacks. One might go as far as saying he supports racism against blacks, or at least wines and dines with the racists.
Although he fully understands that his words threaten the Jewish race and put them in grave danger, Ye doesn’t give a hoot about it. Given his popularity in the United States, it is sad that rather than becoming one of the most influential voices of the black community in the country, he has chosen the wrong side of the divide by always finding ways to deride them and make them a laughingstock with every opportunity.
For instance, in response to the criticisms from many black celebrities who had lampooned his choice of outfit during the Paris Fashion Week where he opted to wear a ‘White Lives Matter‘ shirt, Ye shocked everyone when he took to his social media handles to declare that the Black Lives Matter movement was nothing but a scam that was over, and would never resurrect.
Kanye West who recently turned Ye
One would never expect Kanye to have a reason to champion or promote the ‘White Lives Matter’ movement, and the phrase deployed by white supremacists as their psychological response to the Black Lives Matter social movement that came to life after the brutal murder of George Floyd. Instead, one would expect that Kanye would never have any reason to spit on the grave of Floyd and other African Americans who have paid the ultimate price for their colour and race. Alas, that is not the case, as Kanye has continued to hail their killers and hobnob with them unapologetically.
In an excruciatingly toxic political landscape that is already populated by characters such as Herschel Walker and Clarence Thomas, the last thing Black folks will ever want is being trolled by a Black man, but Ye doesn’t care. He never misses any opportunity to unleash his venom on them and this isn’t the first time. In 2019, he appeared on a TV show and defended then-president Donald Trump from his critics who had rightly called him racist at that time. Kanye had appeared on the show adorning a ‘Make America Great Again’ hat, describing former President Trump as a ‘friend’ just to spite blacks.
The truth remains that Kanye has shown that he loves being viewed as a contrarian. From his body language, his support of Trump was all about being different than everyone else and attempting to get a rise out of people. It gave him attention, which he craves—a chance to appear unique. He was standing apart from almost all African Americans, and for that, he got more promotions. Race ‘traitorism’ is all about giving comfort and solace to enemies of your race for selfish personal benefits. But the biggest question that must be answered by Ye is whether selling his soul for fame was worth it.
On the receiving end of Ye’s wickedness over time have been the African and Jewish races who sadly appear to have a powerful, unique generational relationship with persecution. With a firm knowledge of their fate, blacks and the Jewish people have continued to share strong empathetic connections between themselves that have helped them withstand racism and kept them closely knit during the civil rights movements. It is not only sad but painful that Kanye deemed it right to throw the predicaments of these people out of the window when he declared a few years ago that the 400 years of slavery suffered by the black community was their choice. In fact, he went on to describe the black community as a group of people who are mentally imprisoned.
The actions of ignoramus like Ye have continued to fuel the persecution of the Jewish and Black people. The hate they are presently subjected to, isn’t in any way theoretical. It is not only real, but also disturbing, and a large chunk of it is being propagated by right-wing extremists in the media, politics, and entertainment.
This negative trend has continued to grow and leave large scars on humanity. The Anti-Defamation League had sometime in April this year reported that antisemitic incidents peaked at an all-time high in the United States in 2021, with a total of 2,717 incidents of assault, harassment, and vandalism. According to the report, these figures actually represent the highest number of incidents on record since the ADL began tracking such kinds of data in 1979. These are surely dangerous times, and this explains why lovers of Black people and the Jewish people must not fail to speak up against elements like Ye who have continued to release petrol into the raging vitriolic fire.
Currently, it is not just about the violence that has remained on a steady rise, but also about the open bigotry and persecution. Ye shouldn’t be a rallying cry for racists but sadly this is the case, and he doesn’t appear to care that his actions and inactions are now sealing people’s fates and burying their destinies. It is rather sad that Ye has now become the anti-Ray Allen, who has dedicated much of his life to fighting antisemitism. While Allen is fighting to keep black people safe, Ye is endangering it. More people like Allen must speak up right now to relegate scumbags like Ye to the dustbin of history where they actually do belong to.
Finally, for the Black people defending Ye on and off social media, it is time to realise that he has made it extremely clear that he doesn’t care about you or your collective survival. He has not had any reason to sugarcoat his hate and disdain for you. The earlier you come to this realisation, the better. The Black community must begin to see his comments as a direct threat to their collective survival and speak up in whatever way they can, even when the odds seem to be stacked against them.
