Kanye West’s anti-semetic statement where he threatened to go “death con 3 On JEWISH PEOPLE,” has led to him being dropped by some of his biggest partners including Balenciaga, GAP and adidas.
While he has received public condemnation from Ice Cube, Diddy and the Jewish community for spreading hateful rhetoric, former NFL star Antonio Brown has come out to affirm his support for kanye West. In a lengthy statement shared on social media Tuesday (October 25), Brown, who is also the president of Donda Sports explained his decision to stand with Ye.
“Over the past few weeks the world’s reactionary and selective outrage at comments in the media made by my brother, Ye, have inflamed and sparked rampant conversation and reflection. I too have been able to reflect on statements that I and others in my circle have made that lack clarity in expressing my stance. The people and brands that have relentlessly profited from Black ideas and Black culture chose to distance themselves at a very specific time: a time that demonstrated their prioritization of certain groups over others,” Antonio Brown said.
“None of us in this world are free of judgment, yet we live in a time where scrutiny and pessimism have driven our dialogues on cultural issues toward diatribes. Sensationalism and groupthink have forced people to not speak their minds and act out in fear rather than love. For these reasons, I stand by my dedication to freedom of speech, thought, and opinion. I actively seek to coexist in places where I may have a difference of opinion because it’s diversity in thought that pushes humanity forward.”
He concluded, “I remain committed to bringing new ideas, experiences, and designs to our world I remain in support of the humanity that is Ye.”
Antonio Brown is the second public figure to publicly defend Kanye West’s rights to free speech. Last week, Brooklyn rapper Joey Badass seemingly tweeted in support for West saying “I don’t support everything Kanye been saying and honestly been trying my best to ignore most of it (for my own peace of mind) but censoring his right to freedom of speech is WACK. Askin him to come speak on your platform and then removing/blocking the content cuz you don’t agree?” tweeted Joey on Monday (October 17).
He continued “We can have healthy disagreements. And yes Kanye can do a much better job at his delivery but it’s the same old story. Magnifying a small piece of what he said and taking it out of context. The mass media needs to learn some new moves it’s corny and so obvious at this point.”
Freedom of speech does not guarantee freedom from consequences, as Kanye got tp find out on Tuesday (October 25) when Adidas announced it severed all ties with the rapper with immediate effect.
“adidas does not tolerate anti-Semitism and any other sort of hate speech,” a statement from the company read. “Ye’s recent comments and actions have been unacceptable, hateful and dangerous, and they violate the company’s values of diversity and inclusion, mutual respect and fairness.
“After a thorough review, the company has taken the decision to terminate the partnership with Ye immediately, end production of Yeezy branded products and stop all payments to Ye and his companies. adidas will stop the adidas Yeezy business with immediate effect.”
Following the German company’s decision to cut ties with the Ye, Forbes announced the 45-year-old lost a fortune and is no longer a billionaire. His net worth dropped from an estimated $1.5 billion to $400 million.
Gap also announced it’s removing all Yeezy Gap products from their stores, although the partnership with Ye ended in September. “Antisemitism, racism and hate in any form are inexcusable and not tolerated in accordance with our values,” Gap said in a statement.
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