Kyrie Irving has found a powerful ally after his suspension in the form of Kanye West, with the duo currently embroiled in controversies over antisemitism.
Irving was suspended from the Brooklyn Nets for five games following the basketballer sharing a link to an antisemitic documentary on his social media titled Hebrews To Negroes: Wake Up Black America. The documentary is described by the Anti-Defamation League as “including extensive antisemitism, including claims of a global Jewish conspiracy to oppress and defraud Black people”.
The documentary also espouses Holocaust denial, alleging it is a Jewish conspiracy to fabricate the Holocaust in order to “conceal the nature and protect the power” of Judaism. Naturally, West was quick to defend Irving from the outrage his actions have caused. In a series of tweets, West spoke of how they were being “bullied” because of apparent “business alignments”.
West also targeted Shaquille O’Neal over his criticsm of Irving, with Shaq describing Irving as an idiot for sharing the documentary. Ye seems to be in an incredibly small minority of people defending the basketballer, with the five match ban mostly celebrated by pundits.
The Nets decision to suspend him without pay until he achieves certain remedial goals has been celebrated in particular as the best way to go about the issue, with the city of Brooklyn featuring a high population of Jewish people (roughly one in four). West’s very public support for Irving is alarming as well for Irving, who issued an apology on the saga by saying he doesn’t believe in “everything said” in the documentary.
“I am aware of the negative impact of my post towards the Jewish community and I take responsibility. I do not believe everything said in the documentary was true or reflects my morals and principles.”
Avant followers of West’s very public breakdown will be pleased to know he’s declared himself to be under a vow of silence for the next month, albeit not including his Twitter.
Published: Nov 3, 2022 08:28 pm