Kanye West Says Black History Month Is ‘Torture Porn’
Kanye West is — to absolutely no one’s surprise — making headlines again for controversial statements. West has had a long history of stepping into political disputes in ways that outrage — or sometimes simply confuse — his fans.
Now that he has announced his puzzling run for President, fans can expect to hear even more of these thoughts about politics and society at large. Among the most recent statements, West had some choice words for the concept of Black History Month.
Kanye West has a long history of controversy
West has been lauded as one of the most successful and innovative hip hop artists of all time. He has also gained fame and praise for his work in the fashion industry.
The one word that will never be used to describe him — at least not without irony — is “humble.” West is frequently portrayed to be his own biggest fan. He often declares himself to be the best at whatever topic is at hand and has even proclaimed himself to be a “god.”
When you are that sure of yourself, you’re bound to step into some controversial moments from time to time. For West, several high-profile incidents have often overshadowed his artistic accomplishments. From the time that he famously grabbed the microphone away from Taylor Swift to his support for Bill Cosby to his bizarre visit to the White House, West has repeatedly demonstrated behavior that has made fans question his views.
Statements about race have plagued Kanye West
West’s controversial statements have often centered around race. One of his earliest forays into public political commentary was declaring on live television — next to a shocked Mike Myers — that George W. Bush didn’t “care about black people.” Many of West’s early lyrics also focused on racial inequality and the plight of African Americans to get ahead in America.
Since then, though, West has made several statements that have suggested his views on race are more complicated. For one thing, West walked back his statement about George W. Bush and said that he “was in a victim mentality” when he made that statement.
He also received harsh criticism for declaring that slavery is a choice. “When you hear about slavery for 400 years — for 400 years? That sounds like a choice,” the rapper famously said.
He also continued to praise Donald Trump even as fans accused the President and his policies of being racist and setting back progress on Civil Rights. Even now that West has announced his bid against Trump for the highest office in the land, he still calls the President “special.”
Kanye West calls Black History Month ‘torture porn’
After he announced his run for President, Forbes reached out to West for comments about his platform and vision. West responded with what the reporter calls “four rambling hours of interviews.” One of those responses was on the topic of Black History Month.
West had this to say: “Oh, one other thing—Black History Month. That is torture porn because when that comes up what we do is we see—and by the way, if I get that vibe—that’s the process and we are going to a beautiful, uplifting, fun, creative process as a people, as America collectively, and show the world how great we are. So here we go. Black History Month. Every year they gotta remind us about the fact that we couldn’t vote, ‘they’ meaning white supremacy construct, and I said that with the CT at the end, I knew what was I was talking about . . . Our minds are so much more infinite than what’s coming across TikTok or Instagram, what’s trying to influence our children and the next generation of who we are.”
It’s a little difficult to follow exactly what West is saying about the celebratory month that focuses on the accomplishments of Black people, but it seems that he is taking issue with the reminders of past oppression. West seems to believe that seeing these stories of the past is an attempt to lock the people viewing them into that mentality, which is how he gets to the concept of “torture porn.”
