Kanye West caused quite a stir over the weekend after he made some shocking claims about famed abolitionist Harriet Tubman. West, who had already caught heat for scandalously saying in 2018 that “slavery was a choice,” decided to revisit the topic, this time with a different and arguably more controversial approach.
The Grammy Award winner, who held his first campaign event for the 2020 U.S. presidential election, made allegations that Tubman, who is most noted for escaping slavery and subsequently freeing some 70 other enslaved people didn’t ‘actually free the slave.’ West maintained that instead Tubman freed the slaves only to have them work for other white people.
In an attempt to get on the ballot in South Carolina, West spoke for about an hour during the Sunday, July 19 rally jumping from one subject to the next, speaking on topics ranging from abortion and international trade. However, it was his claims about Tubman in the now-viral video clip that had social media users talking.
Many had something to say, including attorney Ben Crump who tweeted “Dear Kanye, a Black history textbook is in the mail. Read it, then learn to respect Harriet Tubman’s legacy.” Crump added, “#kanyewest #backtoschool.”
R&B singer Trey Songz took to his Instagram to voice his concerns, calling out West as being a distraction. “They been sayin man Trey need to call these n—gas before he just put em online blastin. Ye you in the way of progress foreal, how you turn this goofy from who you were?” Trey captioned a video clip of West at the rally. He added, “I’m so confused, whoever got his number need to call him.”
Meanwhile, rapper Snoop Dogg shared a photo of Tubman with the caption, “Thank u queen Harriet.” The rapper tagged West in the caption, revealing that he was praying for the “Jesus is King” rapper. Actress Denyce Lawton replied in the comments section saying, “Misinformation and misguided leadership is a very scary thing these days.” Lawton added, “The accessibility to reach so many impressionable people who are seeking anything different than what we have right now will drag us all into destruction.” Lawton’s comment was seemingly a jab at West, who has a rather broad and young audience, who, many fear would vote for the rapper.
Many have already voiced their fears over West running for president of the United States. Celebrities and social media users alike have stated that West is not mentally stable, yet alone qualified, to hold such an influential seat.
As you may remember, in 2015, during a speech at the MTV Video Music Awards, West announced that he would be running for president, and, in late 2016, he implied he would run in 2024.
However, on July 4, the rapper tweeted once again that he’d be running in the 2020 elections. “We must now realize the promise of America by trust God, unifying our vision, and building our future,” West tweeted. He added I am running for president of the United States. #2020VISION.” Although West has missed several important deadlines, the rapper may still have a chance to be included on a few ballots across the country.
