This ex-fan done with Kanye and his brand of hate

Kanye West in 2018. Picture: AFP

As a millennial rabbi, my coming of age has been alongside some of pop culture’s biggest icons. When I was in high school, Kanye West’s music was everywhere. My friends and I rapped to his beats, and I remember some of the first tunes I streamed on the new website, YouTube, included Kanye’s song, Gold Digger.

As an impressionable teenager, for me, Kanye was highly influential. He was a rebel who answered to no one. He would stick up for the little guy. I remember being especially proud of him when he told off George W. Bush, accusing him of not “caring about black people” in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. When Kanye’s star rose even further, and he became a fashion icon, I bought into his brand and supported him, wearing his Yeezy-branded sneakers.

For Jewish fans of Kanye, the past 12 months have been very painful. Kanye has repeatedly tweeted anti-Semitic conspiracy theories, has threatened Jewish people on social media and on talk shows, and has made voicing virulently anti-Semitic opinions about Jewish people mainstream.

Last month, when Kanye went on the InfoWars talk show hosted by Alex Jones, alongside white supremacist Nick Fuentes, he stated that people should “stop dissing the Nazis” and he exalted Adolf Hitler. My grandfather was a Holocaust survivor who lost his entire family, including his parents, siblings and cousins.

When Elon Musk reinstated Kanye to Twitter, Kanye immediately posted an image of a swastika fused with a Star of David. And Kanye was banned in the first place, when he infamously tweeted a few months earlier: “I’m a bit sleepy tonight but when I wake up I’m going death con 3 On JEWISH PEOPLE.”

Safe to say, I no longer look up to or admire Kanye West. What an appalling anti-Semite. Jewish people know that words typed on the internet or said in passing are not just words. These words can very quickly turn deadly. There is no such thing as harmless anti-Semitic statements.

My people’s history makes us painfully aware anti-Semitism requires swift denunciation and a zero-tolerance environment. Today, as we mark International Day in Memory of the Victims of the Holocaust, anti-Semitism is on the rise around the world, with worrying trends showing we here in Australia are not immune.

I know how influential Kanye is. I am one of his original fans. As a rabbi, I also know that when Kanye tweets threats about Jewish people, it endangers Jewish communities everywhere. His millions of fans may become encouraged to perpetrate hateful attacks and we here in Australia are not immune from these effects.

So when I saw reports that Kanye is seeking to come to Melbourne to visit his new partner’s family, my immediate response was: no way. We don’t want him here. We do not need him here.

Australian governments have been fearless champions of legislating against hate speech, banning the Nazi symbol in NSW and Victoria, which also increased Holocaust education for students. The federal government should take a loud, bold stand and show this country has zero tolerance for hate speech and anti-Semitism.

I do not stand alone in my position. Jewish organisations are banding together to call on the government not to award Kanye a visa. We have the tools in our legislation to ban people on character grounds. These important legislative tools protect communities that are vulnerable.

Despite loving my Yeezy sneakers, a few months ago, disgusted by Kanye’s anti-Semitism, I put them in the bin. Anti-Semitism has no place in Australia and neither does Kanye West. Reject his visa and send a message to all communities that hate speech and anti-Semitism has no place here. Don’t let Kanye spew his hate on to our sunburnt shores.

Gabi Kaltmann is the rabbi of the Ark Centre in Melbourne.