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Kanye West claims Democrats ‘brainwash’ black Americans and ‘make them abort their children’

Rapper just released his new album Jesus is King

Roisin O'Connor
Music Correspondent
Tuesday 29 October 2019 11:50 GMT
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Kanye West claims Democrats have 'brainwashed' black Americans

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Kanye West has appeared in yet another controversial interview, this time claiming that Democrats have “brainwashed” black Americans and make them “abort their children”.

The rapper and producer, who recently released his long-delayed album Jesus is King, spoke with radio host Big Boy over the weekend as part of promotion for the new record.

Asked about his infamous support for US president Donald Trump, West took a swipe at Democrats, commenting: “We’re [black Americans] brainwashed out here, bro. Come on, man. This is a free man talking. Democrats had us voting [for] Democrats with food stamps for years. What are you talking about? Guns in the Eighties, taking the fathers out the home, Plan B, lowering our votes, making us abort our children... Thou shall not kill.”

Watch the full interview below:

While it was not entirely clear, it appeared that West was conflating Plan B (the morning-after pill) with abortions, when in fact the pill prevents a person from becoming pregnant. The conflation of the two procedures is something medical groups have made consistent attempts to debunk.

When Big Boy asked whether West had considered that his support could be construed as a tacit endorsement of racism, he flipped the question by responding: “The most racist thing a person can tell me is that I’m supposed to choose something based on my race.

“I’m not telling nobody not to vote Democrat,” he added, adding somewhat incomprehensibly: “I love Obama, I love lemonade, I love Wingstop, I love Polos, I love Jordans.”

West made a number of outlandish claims in an earlier interview with Zane Lowe, including that he told people working in his studio not to have sex before marriage, and that his support for Trump was “God’s practical joke to all liberals”.

Jesus is King has received mixed reviews from critics. In a two-star review from The Independent, it was observed that West’s meddling with mixes right before its release had likely affected the album’s lack of cohesion.

Jesus is King feels more like a collection of well-produced skits than a full studio album, and fans will no doubt be wondering whether all the hype and stress that preceded its unveiling was worth it,” the review said.

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