Kanye West's antisemitic comments at odds with his Oklahoma family's civil rights legacy

The fallout from rapper Ye's recent antisemitic rhetoric has continued and this time repudiation of the superstar's controversial comments hit closer to home ― as in Oklahoma City, where he has family ties.

Kari Watkins, president and chief executive officer of the Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum, said Ye's antisemitic talk is at odds with the civil rights legacy of his mother, uncle and grandfather who participated in the Oklahoma City sit-in movement. Watkins shared her views about Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, at the Jewish Federation of Greater Oklahoma City's Fall Luncheon on Wednesday at the Oklahoma City Golf & Country Club.

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Ye's mother, grandfather and uncle have roots in Oklahoma's civil rights movement

Ye's mother Donda West, then Donda Williams, along with his uncle Portwood Williams Jr., were among the African American youths who integrated the whites-only Katz Drug Store lunch counter in August 1958. Ye's grandfather, the late Portwood Williams Sr., also played a key role by providing transportation and other aid for the NAACP Youth Council sit-ins led by Oklahoma City civil rights icon Clara Luper, a sit-in leader who wished to remain anonymous confirmed for The Oklahoman.

"An 8-year-old girl named Donda Williams, the mother of Ye, Kanye West, sat at that (Katz Drug Store) counter with her brother, Portwood Williams Jr., and they were dehumanized as the woman behind the counter spat and coughed in their faces," Watkins told the Oklahoma City luncheon crowd.

"So, I wonder, how does he think this type of dehumanization that we've heard in the last week is any different than what his own family sat through in Oklahoma City ― and they stood up against it."

Watkins said the youths of the Oklahoma City sit-in movement, including Donda West (who is deceased) and Portwood Williams Jr., have spent their lives working for equality, teaching fairness, and against hate. Ye's offensive remarks have been in direct contrast to that legacy, she said.

"The antisemitism he is spewing is not OK," Watkins said. "Hate is not OK."

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Oklahoma religious leader pushing back against hate after Ye's comments

Watkins is among a growing list of people who have repudiated Ye's antisemitic comments or distanced themselves from him in the aftermath of a series of vitriolic remarks he has made in the last several days. His ex-wife, TV personality and socialite Kim Kardashian, in a tweet, pledged her commitment to stand together with the Jewish community and "call on the terrible violence and hateful rhetoric towards them to come to an immediate end,” though she did not mention Ye by name.

Wednesday, Michael Korenblit, current president of the Jewish Federation of Greater Oklahoma City and the son of Holocaust survivors, also spoke out against Ye's remarks and recent comments made by former President Donald J. Trump. Korenblit, who co-founded the Respect for Diversity Foundation with his wife, Joan, described the rapper and Trump as being the latest prominent individuals to make public antisemitic comments. Antisemitism is the discrimination, hostility or prejudice toward Jewish people.

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The Anti-Defamation League, a leading international organization that fights all forms of antisemitism and bias, posted on the organization's website that Ye continues to amplify antisemitic tropes and conspiracy theories by blaming "Jewish media" and "Jewish Zionists" for "numerous alleged misdeeds," among other antisemitic rhetoric. Numerous news outlets have reported that the fallout from Ye's remarks is hitting his wallet as well as his reputation. Several businesses and organizations, including Adidas and Balenciaga, have cut ties with the music and fashion mogul, who is a Chicago native. Twitter and Instagram blocked him from their social media platforms due to his remarks.

In a Twitter post earlier this month, Ye wrote that he would soon go “death con 3 on JEWISH PEOPLE,” an apparent reference to the U.S. defense readiness condition scale known as DEFCON, according to the Associated Press. He apologized for the tweet on Monday.

Meanwhile, Watkins said she and Korenblit didn't compare notes so it was interesting that they both mentioned Ye and the Oklahoma City sit-in movement in their presentations on Wednesday. Korenblit spoke about his parents' commitment to educating him about the importance of speaking out against hate and bigotry of any kind ― whether it was directed at other Jews or anyone else. The Edmond resident also shared with luncheon guests a lengthy list of events fueled by hate, including the 2018 Tree of Life synagogue attack in which a white supremacist shot and killed 11 people in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The fourth anniversary of the attack was Thursday, he noted.

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Quoting activists and leaders including Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Nelson Mandela, Korenblit said the way to combat hate is by refusing to be silent and speaking out against it and helping to educate others about the danger that bigotry represents to society-at-large.

"That is how we will combat hatred and bigotry and that is how we can make this an accepting and inclusive community," he said.

The Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum was created to honor “those who were killed, those whosurvived and those changed forever” by the 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building inOklahoma City. The Memorial and Museum are dedicated to educating visitors about the impact of violenceand terrorism, informing about events surrounding the bombing, and inspiring hope and healing throughlessons learned by those affected.

Watkins said Oklahoma City sit-in participants were already on her mind because some of them will discuss their roles in changing Oklahoma City and the nation for the better at the Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum's Day One Luncheon set for Nov. 2 at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum. The annual luncheon marks the beginning of the Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum's "168 Days of Remembrance" leading up to April 19, 2023, the 28th anniversary of the Oklahoma City bombing.

"As we continue to teach about the impact of violence, we will discuss two moments in history in downtown Oklahoma City separated by five blocks and 37 years," said a flier promoting the luncheon. "The Oklahoma City bombing and the Clara Luper Sit-In at Katz Drug impacted our city and nation and changed lives forever. One was about teachingnon-violence and the other about horrific violence."

Wednesday, Watkins talked about the Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum's Better Conversations initiative, which is designed to bring people together to talk about important issues ― offering opportunities for dialogue in a world where division and isolation have become prevalent. Like Korenblit, she reminded luncheon guests that they may play a role in combatting hate.

"I'm reminded of the words that President Bill Clinton said in Oklahoma City just a few days about the bombing, at the (memorial) prayer service, "she said. "He said 'One thing we owe those who have sacrificed is the duty to purge ourselves of the dark forces which gave rise to this evil. ... When there is talk of hatred, stand up against it, talk out against it. When there is talk of violence, let us stand up and talk against it.'"

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Kanye West's antisemitism at odds with his Oklahoma family's legacy