WASHINGTON (Foreign Correspondent): Billionaire Elon Musk has unfollowed rapper Kanye West after he went on a posting spree over the weekend, declaring on X that he was a “Nazi” and that he loved Hitler. The comments sparked widespread backlash on social media.In addition, he criticized the late fashion designer Virgil Abloh and demanded the release of music legend Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs from prison. Kanye faced strong criticism on social media after these comments.
Musk’s response
After Kanye West’s statements, Elon Musk unfollowed him. Reacting to this, Kanye posted on X, “Elon has unfollowed me so I’m not sure how long I’ll be on Twitter/X. If I get removed, I’ll move to Yeezy.com.” Subsequently, his X account was suspended, ending his social media presence.
David Schwimmer’s reaction
The incident came after Friends actor David Schwimmer criticised Musk for giving a platform to a “deranged bigot”. Schwimmer shared a picture of Kanye West’s controversial post on Instagram, writing, “It’s 2022. We can’t stop a deranged bigot from spewing hateful and ignorant platitudes… but we can stop giving him a megaphone, Mr. Musk.” Schwimmer further said, “Kanye West has 32.7 million followers on your platform, X. That’s more than twice the number of Jews. His hate speech results in real-life violence against Jews.”
Past controversies and bans
Kanye West’s statements are not new to controversies. In October 2022, he posted a picture resembling a swastika, the symbol of Hitler’s Nazi party, after which his account was temporarily banned. This step was taken due to his controversial comments. Although his account was restored after eight months in July 2023, criticism continued on his statements even after this.