The Anti-Defamation League is putting pressuring on Adidas to cut ties with Kanye West following the billionaire rapper and fashion mogul’s series of public rants in which he targeted Jewish people.
In a letter Thursday to Adidas executives, ADL head Jonathan Greenblatt expressed dismay that the athletic apparel company has yet to officially disassociate itself from West, whose Yeezy line of footwear is made in partnership with Adidas.
“We urge Adidas to reconsider supporting the Ye product line and to issue a statement making clear that the Adidas company and community has no tolerance whatsoever for antisemitism,” Greenblatt said.
The letter began:
In light of Kanye West’s increasingly strident antisemitic remarks over the past few weeks, we were disturbed to learn that Adidas plans to continue to release new products from his Yeezy brand without any seeming acknowledgement of the controversy surrounding his most recent remarks. Two weeks ago, after he wore a White Lives Matter shirt, Adidas said he was under review. At this point, what more do you need to review? We were particularly alarmed to see that the Adidas brand intends to release new products in the Yeezy line, including the Yeezy Boost 350, in the run-up to the anniversary of the Pittsburgh synagogue massacre on Oct. 27 – the most violent antisemitic attack in U.S. history.
As I’m sure you are aware, Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, has recently used his media presence and social influence to espouse antisemitic tropes about Jewish intimidation, power and control. Among other antisemitic statements, Ye has blamed “Jewish media” and “Jewish Zionists” for numerous alleged misdeeds, claiming that the “Jewish people have owned the Black voice,” and that the “Jewish community, especially in the music industry, they’ll take us and milk us till we die.” Such notions are deeply embedded in age-old antisemitic myths about Jewish greed and power and control of the entertainment industry.
The Jerusalem Post reported Friday on a video circulating on social media in which West apparently says, “The thing about it being Adidas is like, I can literally say antisemitic shit and they cannot drop me.”
The ADL’s pressure campaign follows Endeavor CEO Ari Emanuel’s recent op-ed in the Financial Times demanding a complete corporate boycott of Kanye West.
“Those who continue to do business with West are giving his misguided hate an audience. There should be no tolerance anywhere for West’s anti-Semitism,” Emanuel wrote. “This is a moment in history where the stakes are high and being open about our values, and living them, is essential. Silence and inaction are not an option.”
As Breitbart News reported, the Anti-Defamation League endorsed the Black Lives Matter movement in 2020 but failed to speak up about BLM riot’s antisemitic attacks on synagogues in Los Angeles and Kenosha.
Follow David Ng on Twitter @HeyItsDavidNg. Have a tip? Contact me at dng@breitbart.com
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