Nigerian Sen. Shehu Sani saw Kanye’s comments as an insult to the victims of the Trans-Atlantic slave trade. (Images courtesy of PM News Nigeria/GC Images)
Rapper Kanye West has ruffled a few feathers since his return to Twitter last month, but officially fell from grace last Tuesday when he foolishly declared that 400 years of African slavery was “a choice.”
“When you hear about slavery for 400 years … that sounds like a choice,” West uttered during an appearance on TMZ Live, drawing outrage from millions of viewers and TMZ’s own Van Lathan, who slammed the “Golddigger” rapper for his ignorance on the subject.
“Like, that was there for 400 years and it’s all of y’all? It’s like we’re mentally in prison,” West opined. “I like the word ‘prison’ because slavery is too direct to the idea of Blacks.”
Like Lathan, Nigerian Senator Shehu Sani stepped up to the plate to educate the rapper on the horrors of Black enslavement. Sani took aim at West on Friday for what he saw as a slight against the victims of the Trans-Atlantic slave trade and invited the father of three to come visit the many existing slave ports across West Africa.
“…If Kanye West thinks slavery was a choice, we will offer him a free ticket and tour guide to visit slave routes and camps in Badagry, Lagos, Ouida, Benin Republic, Ghana and Goree Island in Senegal to ‘experience the choices in chains,” Shehu said in a tweet Friday. ”
“Kanye defecated on the graves of victims,” he added.
If @kanyewest thinks Slavery was a choice,we will offer him a free ticket & tour guide to visit slave routes and camps in Badagry Lagos,Ouida Benin Republic,Ghana & Goree Island in Senegal to ‘experience the choices in chains’.Kanye defecated on the graves of victims@nytimes @AP
— Senator Shehu Sani (@ShehuSani) May 4, 2018
West, who is rumored to be working on a new album, attempted to clarify his controversial statements, but his explanation did little to quell the mounting backlash. Fellow celebrities and activists have spoken out against him and a Detroit radio station even decided it would stop playing his music.
The rapper claimed he’s being attacked for simply, “presenting new ideas.”
