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Boy George has lashed out at Kim Kardashian for not speaking out against ex-husband Kanye West after a string of anti-Semitic comments by the rapper and entrepreneur.
West has been universally convicted of sharing a number of vile statements about the Jewish community, including a tweet and posted to his official Twitter account claiming to wish “death con 3 on Jewish people.”
His views have led sports giant Adidas, which produces its Yeezy footwear and apparel brand and earns more than $1.5 billion annually from the deal, increasingly calling for the unpredictable star to drop.
But Culture Club singer George, 61, has criticized Kim Kardashian – who has four children with West – for not using her significant social media presence to speak out against her ex-husband.
Outrage: Boy George lashes out at Kim Kardashian for failing to speak out against ex-husband Kanye West after a string of anti-Semitic comments by the rapper
In a video shared to Instagram followers on Saturday night, he said: “I’m a little appalled that more artists haven’t come out and spoken out against what he’s saying.
“I am shocked that Kim Kardashian has not come out and added her voice to this debate because this woman has children with Kanye, so as a mother she needs to understand what it feels like for little Jewish children to have these f** * Notes, how demoralizing and terrifying that must be.’
Visibly emotional, he added: “As a gay man I’ve experienced years of prejudice, you know, so the idea of doing that to someone else based on their race or their color or their sexuality or their gender is just f* **ing terrible for me, and it should be terrible for you.’
Hollywood super agent Ari Emanuel recently spoke out in favor of Adidas dropping Kanye West in the wake of a slew of anti-Semitic comments by the controversial rapper and businessman.
Disappointed: Culture Club singer George has criticized Kim – who is raising four children with West – for not using her significant social media presence to speak out
In an op-ed for the Financial Times, Endeavor’s co-CEO wrote that “there should be no tolerance whatsoever for West’s anti-Semitism” and urged brands to completely stop collaborating and collaborating with the designer.
“Apple and Spotify, who host West’s music, whoever organizes West’s tours, and Adidas, who partner with West on his fashion line, should all stop working with him,” wrote Emanuel, essentially calling to a blacklist.
If Adidas and the other brands listed by Emanuel fall out of the west, his billionaire status, which is largely linked to YEEZY’s valuation, may fall.
Response: Super agent Endeavor co-CEO Ari Emmanuel encouraged all major brands to stop working with West in an op-ed because of his recent rant against Jewish people, especially those in the media
No friends: Schwimmer called out West over his anti-Semitic posts and took to Instagram to call the star a ‘bigot’
The German shoe company earns about $1.5 billion annually from its partnership with West thanks to the popularity of YEEZY, which began in 2015.
In just a few weeks, West, who now goes by the name Ye, tweeted that he was going to do “death con 3 on Jewish people,” in addition to making a number of other venomous statements that negatively trope Jews.
“Silence is dangerous,” Emanuel continued. “It allows forms of hatred and racism, including anti-Semitism, to spread and become normalized.
‘It coarsens and humiliates our society and our country.’
Controversy: West threatens to lose billions of net worth if Adidas ends its hugely popular partnership with him
Emanuel, himself a Jew, is widely regarded as one of the most powerful men in the entertainment industry. West has repeatedly blamed the “Jewish media” and the “Jewish community” in the music industry for playing with him.
Emanuel is also good friends with Tesla CEO Elon Musk, with whom West has had a friendly relationship in recent years.
It’s unclear how, once he officially took over Twitter, Musk would manage West’s anti-Semitic and otherwise abusive statements. West was suspended from the platform after his first rant earlier this month.
“Those who continue to do business with West are giving his misguided hatred an audience,” Emanuel wrote.
“This is a moment in history when the stakes are high and openness about our values and living by them is essential. Silence and passivity are not an option.’
Adidas is in a particularly weak position given its history as a Nazi-run company that made boots for Hitler’s army and Panzerschreck bazookas used in the war.
The Anti-Defamation League also wrote an open letter to Adidas CEO Kasper Rorsted and chairman Thomas Rabe calling on the brand to end its partnership with YEEZY.
The organization wrote: “In light of Kanye West’s increasingly sharp anti-Semitic comments in recent weeks, we were alarmed to learn that Adidas plans to continue releasing new products from its Yeezy brand without any apparent acknowledging the controversy surrounding his most recent comments. .
“We are surprised and concerned that Adidas – a brand that supports inclusion and diversity – continues to support not only the Ye product line, but also release new products, as it continues to promote hateful anti-Semitic ideas to its 31 million Twitter followers.
“We urge Adidas to reconsider its support for the Ye product line and issue a statement making it clear that the Adidas company and community do not tolerate anti-Semitism in any way.”
West’s partnership with Adidas has been under review since early October.
“Adidas has always been about creativity, innovation and supporting athletes and artists to realize their vision. The partnership with Adidas Yeezy is one of the most successful in the history of our industry,” the company said.
“We also recognize that all successful partnerships are rooted in mutual respect and shared values.”
According to bank estimates, YEEZY is valued at $4-$5 billion. However, that figure was based on the brand’s relationship with both Gap and Adidas.
Earlier this year, West abruptly ended his relationship with Gap Inc., a decision that reportedly wiped out $1 billion in YEEZY’s valuation.
If the Adidas partnership also goes south, after West’s cascade of anti-Semitic comments, his net worth could plummet a few more billion, pushing him ever closer to multi-millionaire status.
His contract with Adidas runs until 2026.
Celebrities, including Amy Schumer and David Schwimmer, have also supported the ADL’s call for Adidas to drop West.
Schwimmer, 55, recently shared a video of West, 45, saying: ‘What I can say about Adidas is, I can literally say anti-Semitic things and they can’t let me down, I can say anti-Semitic things and Adidas can’t let me down. fall. What now? What now?
Schwimmer was backed by Friends co-star Jen Aniston in his post calling for the brand to drop Ye.
While Kim Kardashian’s ex-husband is known to have unpredictable outbursts on social media — he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 2016 — his tirades have become more frequent this year.
Recently, West hired Camille Vasquez, the attorney who represented Johnny Depp, to look after his business interests.
Vasquez, who has received national attention for representing Depp in his heated defamation lawsuit with ex-wife Amber Heard, will be one of the attorneys for the firm Brown Rudnick now working with West, TMZ reports.
The realization that West has become a lawyer comes after the high-fashion brand Balenciaga dropped West as a business partner.