Kanye West told a Jewish Adidas manager to kiss a photo of Hitler "every day"

A bombshell new report from the New York Times also discusses how the rapper (now known as Ye) would throw shoes and make staffers watch porn during meetings

Last October, Adidas finally dropped their long-term partner Kanye West after the rapper made a slew of antisemitic comments (among other things). This was despite the fact that Yeezy, their sneaker partnership, was netting the company over $1 billion annually. For many staffers, it was too little, too late. While Adidas employees have come forward with allegations of exceedingly bad behavior from the rapper (now known as Ye) in the past, a lengthy new report from The New York Times delves deeper into the decade-long collaboration than any have before. What it found is stomach-churning.

Apparently, employees were confronted with West’s rampant antisemitism as soon as their very first pitch meeting with the rapper. After reviewing a number of unsatisfactory fabric swatches and shoe designs, West allegedly grabbed one of the sketches and drew a swastika on the toe to convey his dislike of the sneaker. It only got worse from there.

As Ye ramped up his antisemitism in public last fall, he also doubled down behind the scenes. Employees reported that West repeatedly commended Hitler for his use of propaganda, calling the genocidal dictator a “marketing master” and saying he planned to name his next album after him. (It was eventually titled Ye.) Most egregiously, West apparently told TMZ that “it was important to love everyone, including Nazis” in the same interview in which he infamously said that slavery “sounds like a choice.” Back in the office, West stood by that statement, telling Jon Wexler, a Jewish Adidas executive, to “hang a photo of Hitler in his kitchen and kiss it every day to practice unconditional love.”

read more: avclub.com/kanye-west-adidas-yeezy-new-york-time-…

archive link: archive.ph/RWHHH

WarmSoda,

Damn. I thought we were officially done with news about this guy.

Waluigis_Talking_Buttplug,

Remember, these businesses only dropped him once it wasn’t profitable to keep him around. Has nothing to do with his actual speech.

RampantParanoia2365,

You might try reading the article, then.

sock,

im sure most people wanted him kicked out instantly it was probably just the goobers that didn’t have to deal with him that kicked him after profits dwindled (and a bunch of complaints i assume).

surely the average person doesnt care about the company they work for as to suffer for the ceos profit.

wrath_of_grunge,
wrath_of_grunge avatar

that's kind of the funny thing about this story. do you know how much of a colossal dickbag you gotta be for a company to say no to making a billion dollars? they will put up with so much shit for that kind of money. but West was a dickbag of such monumental proportions that the company is like, 'nah, fuck it, it's not worth it', to a billion fucking dollars.

on top of that we see later in the article

Still, throughout all of this, the company’s C-suite consistently “sought not to rein him in but to appease him,” with an eye to their bottom line. After the slavery comment, for example, Kasper Rorsted, Adidas’ CEO at the time, brushed it off, saying “Kanye has helped us have a great comeback in the U.S.” He only doubled down months later, adding: “We’re not signing up to his statements; we’re signing up to what he brings to the brand and the products he’s bringing out.”

and we learn once again, ironically, that appeasement doesn't work.

CitizenKong,

Also, once again, that many executives are sociopathic assholes.

Anticorp,

There’s nothing bombshell about this. The title should read “man desperate for attention cries for attention yet again”.

jcdenton,

The balls on this man are respectable

Smoogs,

I don’t think you know what that word means and should stop using it.

sagrotan,
@sagrotan@lemmy.world avatar

Come and see, people, have a look into the future of Elon Musk, admission free, see the incredible cringy Kanye W.

some_guy,

On the one hand, I have sympathy for him. I’m bipolar and I engage(d; I’ve been able to manage it as I get older) in self-destructive behavior when in the throes of a manic episode. Nothing close to what he did, but still. Also, you have to assume that the massive fame, fortune, and success warped his sense of self a great amount, setting him up for the disaster that he became. Plus people close to him were clearly exploiting the situation for their own gain.

On the other hand, he seems to have been on a decades-long spiral of bad behavior. And there’s no excusing the horrible shit he said when it was coming to a head last year.

I like to say that being drunk doesn’t absolve anyone of their responsibility for their actions while drunk. I drink a lot and it doesn’t get me into trouble because I’m not the type to become belligerent, so lucky me.

I also don’t think a manic episode excuses poor behavior. That’s why I spent a lot of effort learning to manage my condition (plus, the symptoms start going into remission after a certain age).

Kanye had no excuse not to learn how to cope with and manage his condition. But his success gave him (almost) unlimited permission to do the opposite. He did this to himself. It’s actually quite tragic. But he’s still an asshole. He gets no free pass from me.

TheDarksteel94,

The main problem imo is that he’s surrounded by yes-men who probably also somehow make money off of his behaviour. His self destructive tendencies are already quite dangerous to everyone around him, but it’s even more dangerous if everyone in your personal sphere affirms this behaviour. At some point you’ll start to believe that you’re in the right.

He needs good therapy and meds, but maybe it’s already too late for that if he’s not willing to accept help.

stolid_agnostic,

You aren’t surrounded by enablers. That changes everything. You still have to deal with the consequences of your actions.

Blackmist,

“George Bush doesn’t care about black people” to “I love Nazis” in 18 years. What a ride.

That’s a lot of meds not taken.

Maiznieks,

I hate it that my adidas trainers get more and more expensive constantly :/

BruceTwarzen,

Don't worry, the children making them don't see any of that money

21Cabbage,

“Employees reported that West repeatedly commended Hitler for his use of propaganda, calling the genocidal dictator a “marketing master” and saying he planned to name his next album after him. (It was eventually titled Ye.)” Wow, whole thing just reads like a bad joke made at his expense. He always manages to be stranger than fiction.

letsgocrazy,

It’s because he has a mental illness.

And people prefer getting outraged than understanding.

Goblin_Mode,

Mental illness that he refuses to do anything about.

Also is your argument here that he is antisimetic because he has a mental illness? I’ve never heard of an illness that just suddenly makes you a nazi. Those two things are independent of one another, the mental illness just makes it more blatant

Squizzy,

That doesn’t excuse it entirely, I’m understanding but fuck his shit he has it better than most my compassion is limited for the rich.

Mr_Blott,

(now known as Ye)

When I was younger, if a kid tried to give themselves a cool nickname, everyone would do their absolute best to call them anything but that and make up the worst possible names to call them instead.

We should bring that back. I even went to school with a guy called Dungboy

ChickenLadyLovesLife,

I support calling Kanye “Dungboy”.

HootinNHollerin,
@HootinNHollerin@sh.itjust.works avatar

Like when George Costanza tried to go by T-Bone

Tvkan,

That’s literally his legal name though.

Also: If someone wants to be known by a different name, why deny them? Sure, if it’s offensive or overly complicated or in bad faith no one needs to go along, but I don’t see why someone couldn’t be called Ye.

Teon,
Teon avatar

[announcer] Introducing Mr. Ye Old News.

Mr_Blott,

God you people are boring 😂

If an anti semetic cunt tells you he wants to be called Ye, you call him YeJew ffs

letsgocrazy,

Because if they went along with you, then they couldn’t get outraged about ‘dead naming’ people, and they want to keep doing that 🤷🏼

Kase,

But being trans is not the same as being antisemitic. It’s okay to (socially) punish someone for the latter.

nonailsleft,

I suggest Yew (pronounced ‘jew’)

Mr_Blott,

Bit insulting to graveyard trees innit

Scubus,

Makes me think of yahweh

TopRamenBinLaden,

Ohh Yeweh is a good one.

Carighan,
@Carighan@lemmy.world avatar

Can Ye? Or can Ye not?

Godnroc,

YeNo. Like, “should we keep talking about this guy? He’s kind of a moron…” “Yeah, no.”

jeffw,

He’d make them watch porn?

“Come on guys, l know we do it every morning, but my wife’s sex tape is hot, let’s watch it again!!”

lemmylommy,

Hobbits gone wild?

jeffw,

Huh?

GentlemanLoser,

Bitch are you sure you’re not a hobbit

Annoyed_Crabby,

A bombshell new report from the New York Times also discusses how the rapper (now known as Ye) would throw shoes and make staffers watch porn during meetings

Shit, he’s here to ruin another word.

Gigan,
@Gigan@lemmy.world avatar

What the actual fuck is wrong with him?

TopRamenBinLaden,

I wonder if he has people in his ear telling him this shit and he’s easy to fool, or if it is just a terrible internet rabbit hole he got himself into. It could also be that he’s in ultimate contrarian mode and just wants to provoke.

It just seems weird for a black man to literally turn into a person who supports Nazis on his own. Like, he has to know what Hitler and the Nazis would have thought of him and his family, right?

I get that he has untreated mental illness, but I feel as if maybe someone is putting these ideas in his head. I could be wrong, though.

Anticorp,

How much time do you have?

PoliticalAgitator,

He has the kind of mental health problems that the far-right prey on.

ZeroCool,

Yep, that’s exactly why he pals around with Nick Fuentes and Milo Yiannopoulos.

PoliticalAgitator,

It’s genuinely surprising that West managed to shove his head so far up his own ass that he couldn’t see himself reflected in Milo’s face; a token minority kept around for plausible deniability, whose pedestal will be kicked out from under them the moment they’re no longer useful to the far right.

CeruleanRuin,

Untreated mental illness supplemented by fame-induced yes-men syndrome.

What he needs is a good slap and a kick to the groin.

livus,
livus avatar

Well that comment took an unexpectedly medieval turn.

What people with untreated mental illness need is appropriate treatment for mental illness, even if their delusions are disturbing to us.

EdibleFriend,
@EdibleFriend@lemmy.world avatar

As I said elsewhere in this thread, I’m bipolar and went without medication for long time just like Kanye.

He 100% needs to have the bear jew let lose on him.

livus,
livus avatar

@EdibleFriend sorry but no. There's a history in my country of locking mentally ill people up in asylums and beating them up. I have seen the results, it's not a good thing, it solves nothing.

The people that do need the crap kicked out of them are the producers etc who exploit the racist hate-filled ramblings of Mr West in order to make money for themselves. And those among the consumers who lap it up.

captainlezbian,

Ok or we could punish the naziism and treat the mental illness at the same time and if they go away together we’ll know

livus,
livus avatar

@captainlezbian why would you punish someone for the content of mental delusions?

I don't care if its alien abduction or nazism or gangstalking.

EdibleFriend,
@EdibleFriend@lemmy.world avatar

Being bipolar doesn’t turn you into a Nazi. That’s an excuse.

He is a Nazi and all Nazis deserve to be beaten to death.

prettywittybiddy,

Hmm. Gangs exist. Stalking exist….Gangstalking? Nahhhhh

willya,
@willya@lemmyf.uk avatar

Maybe if he makes fun of Jada on his next album.

EdibleFriend,
@EdibleFriend@lemmy.world avatar

I always hear this excuse. I’m bipolar and went without medication for a very long time. Never turned me into a fucking Nazi.

He is just a horrible person who also happens to be bipolar.

Maeve,

And your illness and demeanor, as well as your upbringing are exactly like everyone else’s. Please.

Miclux,

Those are very harsh words for not knowing his mental conditions.

ickplant,
@ickplant@lemmy.world avatar

He is famously bipolar.

Miclux, (edited )

Sure. But is this all?

ickplant,
@ickplant@lemmy.world avatar

I’m honestly not sure what you mean by that. We know he is bipolar. We know people sometimes tend to use that as an excuse for his words and actions. And people with bipolar like myself tend to dislike that because our disorder does not turn us into neo-Nazis.

Miclux,

Exactly what you said. He has probably more going on.

flicker,

Reminds me of when Ambien said the same thing.

And the above poster who says they need treatment should read this. We are out here. We are mentally ill. Our mental illness, even at its most untreated, doesn't make us fucking nazis so trying to be "kind" to nazis who happen to be mentally ill makes you an apologist.

Dude does need treatment. He also deserves a punch for the nazi bullshit. The one doesn't absolve the other.

moosetwin,
@moosetwin@lemmy.dbzer0.com avatar

I don’t care if they’re a sick child or hitler, everyone deserves treatment, no matter who they are or what they have done.

Geneva Convention 1, article 6Wounded or sick soldiers shall be entertained and taken care of, to whatever nation they may belong. Commanders-in-chief shall have the power to deliver immediately to the outposts of the enemy soldiers who have been wounded in an engagement, when circumstances permit this to be done, and with the consent of both parties. Those who are recognized, after their wounds are healed, as incapable of serving, shall be sent back to their country. The others may also be sent back, on condition of not again bearing arms during the continuance of the war. Evacuations, together with the persons under whose directions they take place, shall be protected by an absolute neutrality.

The Hippocratic Oath, Paragraphs 4-7I will remember that there is art to medicine as well as science, and that warmth, sympathy, and understanding may outweigh the surgeon’s knife or the chemist’s drug. I will not be ashamed to say “I know not”, nor will I fail to call in my colleagues when the skills of another are needed for a patient’s recovery. I will respect the privacy of my patients, for their problems are not disclosed to me that the world may know. Most especially must I tread with care in matters of life and death. If it is given me to save a life, all thanks. But it may also be within my power to take a life; this awesome responsibility must be faced with great humbleness and awareness of my own frailty. Above all, I must not play at God. I will remember that I do not treat a fever chart, a cancerous growth, but a sick human being, whose illness may affect the person’s family and economic stability. My responsibility includes these related problems, if I am to care adequately for the sick.

Note: I am not against locking them up in prisons, but while they are in prison they still have a right to treatment.

flicker,

I will reiterate that I agreed upon treatment as a necessity. I also believe he deserves a punch. Not a single illness out there makes you a nazi. Not one.

livus,
livus avatar

@flicker I know it's probably comforting to think to yourself that your entire personality and belief systems are baked into your core and could never be affected by any kind of illness.

Unfortunately it's not quite true, there are serious mental illnesses that could make you think you are a nazi or that you want to kill someone or whatever. This is one of the heartbreaking things about mental illnesses like schizophrenia.

If you've never seen it you wouldn't know what it's like of course, but it's like a great big chunk of the person you used to know and love has been replaced by a stranger in their body. When they start saying abberent shit it can be hard for people to remember it's the illness talking. To remember they are still "in there" somewhere.

flicker,

I'm not going to get into my history here but I've spent years in and out of institutions. If you want to make the argument that this is schizoaffective disorder I won't stop you, but I assure you that even if that is the case, we are still completely responsible for what we say, and I would argue even moreso because there is zero excuse for him not to be seeking care and treatment.

When grandma has dementia, and spits and bites, she is still responsible for the consequences of her actions. We will treat her with kindness and compassion and health care, but she isn't absolved of her part in hurting someone. That is the notion I rebel against. You are still responsible for your racism. You are not given a consequence free card because of your illness. Advocating for a consequence free environment is why people can claim Kanye should be forgiven and should not be treated as an intelligent, thinking, feeling human being. I will not allow someone to say he should be. That is dehumanizing and ultimately the opposite of kindness.

Mirshe,

To quote my favorite podcaster, “mental illness is not your FAULT, but it is your RESPONSIBILITY.”

flicker,

Precisely! I feel like taking away our responsibility also takes away our agency. I hate when people have their agency restricted.

There's a reason AA and NA and other peer recovery services make people take responsibility for what they've done, even if it was illness that "made" them do those things. Because having responsibility for what you've done is ultimately what frees you to have responsibility for the good that you can do. I love that for us, for all of humanity.

livus,
livus avatar

@flicker I think we may be talking at cross purposes here.

I am simply advocating for non violent mental health treatment for all who need it.

I don't follow Kanye West closely so I don't know what his issue is or whether his expressed views are products of his own mind or malfunctions. My comments are not about him, they are about the absurd generalizations about mental health I am seeing in here.

I have had loved ones with Schizophrenia and no, they absolutely should not be "held accountable" let alone physically assaulted for the content of their delusions. That's just not how it works.

Sweeping generalisations about all mental illness are not helpful, particularly when we have a long and fairly recent history in our societies of violent abuse of such people.

I'm not going to argue about this any more. Thank you for the discussion.

flicker,

Good deal! Have a great day!

livus,
livus avatar

@flicker you too, friend! Sorry if I came across as grumpy or defensive before. I appreciate that you took time to talk to me.

flicker,

I didn't read it as grumpy or defensive! One thing I miss about a more civilized age... people were allowed to "argue." You could fight it out, have opinions, everyone could be right at the same time (and wrong, too) but the ability to converse seems to be lost.

We're all made better by these things! Even if it seems to get heating. Being able to talk (and disagree!) Sharpens our understanding of our topics, helps us work through and solidify our feelings and opinions, and (assuming everyone is speaking in good faith, which is a big ask on the internet) we are all made better for it!

I said good deal because it is! I called you friend cuz we are! I said have a good day because I hope you do!

We part as friends! We aren't enemies even if we may seem at odds. Take care of yourself. You're a person who deserves happiness and kindness in life.

livus,
livus avatar

@flicker thanks, you too!

I agree with you, being able to dialogue through disagreements is really important.

When I was younger I used to discuss politics a lot online, and one of the things I discovered is that many people on the "opposite" part of the political spectrum in my country want the same basic outcomes I do (stuff like fairness) - they just disagree on how to achieve it. That really helped me to see everyone as people like me not weird/scary/strange.

You're a familiar "face" to me here on kbin so it's nice that we have talked a bit!

TrickDacy,

Wowzers

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