As the impact of Kanye West’s anti-Semitic comments becomes clear, this is what it really feels like to experience discrimination for being Jewish

Last year (2021), The Community Security Trust (CST) – a charity that monitors antisemitism – received a record number of reports of anti-Jewish hate in the first six months of 2021. Chief executive Mark Gardner said British Jews in 2021 were suffering “levels of hatred that were worse than anything seen in recent decades”, likely as a result of the Israel-Gaza conflict.

And though the situation in the Middle East is currently relatively stable, anti-Semitism still continues to be experienced by many Jews in the diaspora, most recently – and publicly – Kanye West’s weeks-long spate of anti-Semitic. The artist took to Twitter and Instagram, where he has a combined following of over 30 million, to express conspiracy theories that have spurred hate and violence against Jewish people in the past – including that they have outsized power and influence in the media. After backlash from users, West’s Twitter account was suspended and there has been a public outcry demanding that influential brands cut ties with him. 

One particular petition that has gained increasing momentum in the UK is entitled ‘Adidas must end its partnership with the antisemite Ye (AKA Kanye West),’ and was initially set up by Campaign Against Antisemitism, a volunteer-led charity dedicated to exposing and countering antisemitism through education and zero-tolerance enforcement of the law.

“By continuing to align itself with a public figure who has revealed himself to be a virulent antisemite, Adidas would be demonstrating that it does not care about racism against Jews,” the petition page reads. “Ye has said: “The thing about me and Adidas is like, I can literally say antisemitic s*** and they can’t drop me. I can say antisemitic things and Adidas can’t drop me. Now what?”

Adidas must answer Ye’s question. It must denounce antisemitism and end its partnership with Ye.”

You can sign the petition here. 

The impacts of the rappers comments, initially played down by many as “harmless rants” or “free speech”, are already being seen, with thousands having taken to social media over the past week to express their support for the rapper, reaffirm antisemitic tropes and vehemently deny that Kanye expressed anything “wrong”.  A well-known hate group to Los Angeles this weekend set up a demonstration of support on a 405 Freeway overpass, raising alarms from local officials and residents that the rapper’s rhetoric was inspiring more public bigotry. 

On Saturday, the demonstrators gave Nazi salutes as they stood behind a large overpass banner that read, “Kanye is right about the Jews,” according to images collected by antidiscrimination organisations and Jewish residents. 

Here, Hilary Freeman, a 49-year-old journalist and author who lives in Camden with her partner and daughter, shares the shocking realities of experiencing anti-Semitism on her own doorstep in London.

At seven years old, I had my first taste of antisemitism. While playing out in a street in Wembley, North London with my little brother, a group of children shouted at us from the opposite side of the road. “Oy, are you Jewish?” they taunted, probably recognising our Jewish primary school uniforms. I bristled. Then came the killer line: “Jews are dirty and mean.”