Kanye West‘s recent antisemitic remarks are having a very real and devastating effect. The people of Jacksonville, Florida witnessed his dangerous influence firsthand over the weekend.
On October 29, an eerie message, “Kanye was right about the Jews,” was projected across the TIAA Bank Field during the popular Georgia-Florida game.
There were also banners hanging from an overpass in the city that read “End Jewish Supremacy in America” and “Honk if you know it’s the Jews.”
These offensive messages were likely inspired by the rapper’s October 8 threat to go “death con 3 On JEWISH PEOPLE.”
At the time, West tweeted, “You guys have toyed with me and tried to black ball anyone whoever opposes your agenda.”
Mariam Feist, CEO of the Jewish Federation and Foundation of Northeast Florida, reacted to the deeply concerning Jacksonville incidents.
“It’s just so sad and frustrating to the entire Jewish community,” she shared. “Here we are four years later [after 11 people were killed in the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Tree of Life Synagogue] and no one has learned any lessons.”
Feist continued, “This should be a place that is welcoming of all faiths, religions, all races and all creeds. I am a proud Jew, and I am a proud American. I want to live, and I want our community. I want my family, my neighbors to live somewhere and feel safe and secure. I wish there was an answer for how you could stop all this but this has been going on for centuries.”
How should people respond to rising antisemitism? According to Feist, education is key.
“Start educating children of all beliefs and all walks of life, to have respect and tolerance for each other,” she suggested. “That’s what makes America the melting pot. We’re all bringing our differences.”
Following his harmful remarks, companies like Adidas, JPMorgan Chase, Gap and Balenciaga have cut ties with West.
