Hate is such a strong word. We should not use it, or be deliberate and use it with caution.
I hate what has been doing and saying.
For those who don't know, I'll cut to the chase: Ye, formerly and most popularly known as Kanye West, has used repeatedly in recent days. He's lost big money, and respect.
Ye deliberately took a taunting stance against lots of Black people and people who support equality when he wore a "White Lives Matter" hoodie. And not long ago, he posted some disturbing social media posts.
Using what he indicated were screenshots with music mogul Sean "Puffy" Combs, Ye wrote: "Ima [sic] use you as an example to show the Jewish people that told you to call me that no one can threaten or influence me."
Ye also went after Combs on Twitter. "I'm going death (sic) con 3 on Jewish people," read his tweet. Of course, he meant "def con." He probably doesn't know it is a widely-used U.S. Air Force phrase that stands for "defense readiness condition," used to designate different threat levels.
Was he not paying attention during the pre-Elon Musk Twitter days when 45 was blocked? Who knows what will happen now that the self-described "Chief Twit" has taken over the company. But , even from the immediate previous president. As the Tesla company owner planned a $44 billion purchase of Twitter last week, he clearly watched the Ye fallout and changed his tune.
With the advent of Elon Tweet World, Musk said he won't allow hate speech and disinformation. “Twitter obviously cannot become a free-for-all hellscape, where anything can be said with no consequences!” he wrote in a Thursday tweet.
Like Ye, Musk makes some intentionally provocative moves, even taunting haters who don't want to see him become Twitter King. "Entering @Twitter HQ — let that sink in," he tweeted with a video of him carrying — guess — a sink. Silly, but not racist or antisemitic.
Musk graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with two degrees, one from the internationally respected Wharton School. Forbes says he's worth more than $219 billion. I'm sure he likes it that way. I'm sure he has no intention of taking Ye-like actions to quickly decrease or liquidate his assets.
Showing that some people, and businesses, still think there's a difference between free speech and hate speech, Ye is suffering financial consequences.
"I lost 2 billion dollars in one day and I'm still alive," Ye wrote in a Thursday tweet after losing some significant business.
In contrast to Musk, Ye is a college dropout who hustled to find ways to be a phenomenal business, fashion and music success.
Powerhouse clothing company , super fashion house company and mega sports apparel company decided the old Kanye West, with whom they had such a good and financially beneficial relationship, had sunk into a Ye they don't know. They ended their s after his racist and antisemitic comments, and after Ye — still a Black man in America — wore wearing a shirt with a Ku Klux Klan-linked slogan.
Ye seems to be determined to show that it's okay for Black people to be racist and antisemitic, and worse.
The Daily Show host Trevor Noah suggested that Ye has a problem that needs to be addressed. Ye has indicated that he has serious mental health challenges, and he has trouble when he doesn't take his medication, something he chooses not to do. Ye referenced Noah with a racial slur on Instagram, another reason he was kicked off of IG.
Ari Emmanuel, CEO of Endeavor, wrote that encouraged companies not to support Ye. "(T)hose who continue to do business with West are giving his misguided hate an audience," he wrote.
Ye is a brilliant creative. He is one of the world's most influential music producers and songwriters. That doesn't mean we should choose genius over genuine respect. Ye is being blasted for being anti-semitic, not for being anti-Black. I wish there was a more equal backlash, but I am glad he's feeling the heat.
When we know more about people and companies and their actions and we choose to support them by buying music, products and services — or giving them our vote — we endorse what they show us they stand for.
I'm not buying Ye anything. I'm buying something Adidas. Soon.