Kanye West’s website has gone down amid fierce backlash to the rapper using the Super Bowl to sell swastika T-Shirts which has seen him be slammed by The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) for ‘vile antisemitism’.
The 47-year-old rapper, now known as Ye, sparked backlash after a barrage of anti-Semitic tweets in the aftermath of the Super Bowl – which he used to promote his site.
Those who went to the site found just one item for sale – a $20 white T-shirt featuring a swastika.
But on Tuesday his entire site seemed to have gone down, with visitors instead being given an error message when trying to access it.
The rapper – who deleted his X account after a slew of anti-Semitic and offense posts – posted an image of the white top early on Saturday morning and described his latest design as ‘my greatest performance art piece thus far’.
The controversial merchandise launch came just hours after a 12-hour barrage of shocking racist, homophobic and sexist tweets on X on Thursday night, which also included one begging President Trump to free Diddy from prison.
These included antisemitic remarks, where he expressed support for Adolf Hitler and stated he would never ‘trust or work with Jewish people’ again and insisted he ‘will not apologize’ for his views.
Today the ADL – a New York-based international non-governmental organization that was founded to combat antisemitism – hit out at West’s ‘vile antisemitism’ in a statement shared with MailOnline.
Kanye West has been slammed by the The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) for ‘vile antisemitism’ – as he sells swastika T-shirts on his Yeezy website
The 47-year-old rapper, now known as Ye, used the Super Bowl to promote his Yeezy website, which now displays a single item – the $20 white T-shirt featuring a swastika
A statement on the organisation’s social media pages said: ‘As if we needed further proof of Kanye’s antisemitism, he chose to put a single item for sale on his website – a t-shirt emblazoned with a swastika.
‘The swastika is the symbol adopted by Hitler as the primary emblem of the Nazis. It galvanized his followers in the 20th century and continues to threaten and instill fear in those targeted by antisemitism and white supremacy.
‘If that wasn’t enough, the t-shirt is labeled on Kanye’s website as ‘HH-01,’ which is code for ‘Heil Hitler.’ Kanye was tweeting vile antisemitism nonstop since last week.
‘There’s no excuse for this kind of behavior. Even worse, Kanye advertised his website during the Super Bowl, amplifying it beyond his already massive social media audience.’
In a separate post, the ADL encouraged its supporters to sign a petition calling for Fox Sports to apologise for the rapper’s ad, stating: ‘At the Super Bowl, hate took a front-row seat.
‘Kanye West promoted an ad with a link to swastika t-shirts, broadcasting it to millions on live TV.
‘Just days earlier, his dangerous rants on X praised Hitler, self-identified as a Nazi, and spread antisemitic vitriol.
‘In 2022, ADL identified 30 incidents of harassment, assault, and vandalism linked to Kanye’s online outbursts. We refuse to let hate win.’
Kanye filmed a bizarre close-up video of himself for his Super Bowl ad, telling viewers to visit his online store.
‘I spent all the money for the commercial on these new teeth,’ West said, smiling for the camera and wearing sunglasses. So, once again, I had to shoot it on the iPhone.’
‘Um. Umm. Umm,’ West continued before definitively directing viewers to his brand’s website. ‘Go to Yeezy.com.’
He posted an image of the white top early on Saturday morning, described his latest design as ‘my greatest performance art piece thus far’
He then filmed a bizarre, close-up video of himself for a Super Bowl ad, telling viewers to visit his online store
His site used to feature other merchandise and products, but has since been wiped of all except the t-shirt
Kanye brazenly advertised the T-shirt just hours after explaining a succession of anti-Semitic, sexist and homophobic posts were simply a ‘social experiment’
Those who now go to the rapper’s website now see just one product for sale – a $20 shirt featuring the infamous Nazi hate symbol, without any explanation.
Boasting of his new creation online on Saturday, West said: ‘I’ve wanted to make this tee shirt for years,’ he wrote on his X account, accompanied by a photo of the product. ‘My greatest performance art piece thus far.’
Within hours, the image had garnered 34,000 ‘likes’ on his X account.
It came after a series of shocking tweets last week.
Among his most shocking tweets in the hours-long tirade, Kanye proudly declared: ‘I AM A NAZI’, later adding: ‘I LOVE HITLER NOW WHAT B*****S.’
The rapper was previously accused of anti-Semitism in 2022 after making a series of racist remarks, but later apologized, insisting it was not his ‘intention to hurt or demean’ the Jewish community.
On Thursday night that apology appeared to have been retracted as he tweeted: ‘IM NEVER APOLOGIZING FOR MY JEWISH COMMENTS I CAN SAY WHATEVER THE F**K I WANNA SAY FOREVER WHERES MY F***ING APOLOGY FOR FREEZING MY ACCOUNTS SUCK MY D**K HOWS THAT FOR AN APOLOGY.’
A second tweet stated: ‘So funny how N****** rapping about killing N****** is not hate but posting a swastika is hate.’
Elsewhere he posted a picture of a Mounjaro jab and stated: ‘YEEZY DOES NOT HIRE FAT OR UGLY PEOPLE.’
In another he wrote: ‘SOME PEOPLE I LOVE SOME PEOPLE I GOT LOVE FOR I DONT HATE ANYONE I JUST DONT CARE ABOUT THEM ENOUGH TO HATE THEM.’
Prior to his his latest tweets, the troubled rapper addressed concerns that his wife Bianca Censori is a victim of coercive control after her naked outing at the Grammys, claiming he has ‘dominion’ over her.
Kanye, who took aim at several minority groups in his foul-mouthed tirade, wrote, ‘IF I LOST EVERYTHING ‘AGAIN TONIGHT WAS WORTH IT I CAN DIE AFTER THIS’, while also insisting he was ‘sober’ while tweeting.
Among his most shocking tweets in the hours-long tirade, Kanye proudly declared: ‘I AM A NAZI’, later adding: ‘I LOVE HITLER NOW WHAT B*****S’
The rapper was previously accused of anti-Semitism in 2022 after making a series of racist remarks, but later apologized , insisting it was not his ‘intention to hurt or demean’ the Jewish community
Having voiced his support for incarcerated rapper Diddy, Kanye doubled down by saying he would ‘never speak again’ to anyone who disagreed with him, while also using homophobic slurs to lash out at those who supported Kamala Harris.
Kanye – who previously made vile sexual taunts about the former Vice President – started off by tweeting: ‘ANY N***A COME IN MY FACE AN ASK ME ABOUT THAT PUFF S**T IM STEALING OFF THEM IMMEDIATELY I DONT GIVE A F**K IF YOU 8 FEET TALL IMA JUMP AND STEAL OFF YOU.’
Insisting he would ‘block’ anyone who challenged him, he continued: ‘YOU N****S IS CONTROLLED AND BROKE ALL YOU KAMALA D**K RIDING F*****S YALL GOT EVERYTHING TO SAY ABOUT MY OPINIONS WHEN YOU JUST DOING WHAT N****S MAKE YOU DO FOR MONEY.’
Kanye was condemned by leading religious charities after he launched into the vile anti-Semitic rant.
In a statement to MailOnline, a spokesperson for the Jewish Leadership Council said: ‘Kanye West’s latest tirade of anti-Jewish racism is not only hateful but poses a real danger for Jewish people around the world.
‘His posts on X will undoubtedly give inspiration and cover to antisemites.’
A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism echoed their sentiments, sharing: ‘Once again, Ye has gone on an antisemitic rampage online. It couldn’t be any clearer that he is an unrepentant, proud antisemite.
‘More people have viewed these posts than there are Jews on the planet.
‘It is obvious that Ye has not learned his lesson the first time, when Adidas ended its partnership with him, following our call to do so.
‘At a time of unprecedented antisemitism, there can be no mistaking this incitement for exactly what it is. We call on Elon Musk to remove him from X.’
The American Jewish Committee called on those in the entertainment industry to call out Kanye’s remarks, warning of the rapper’s ‘dangerous influence’.
They shared a statement that read: ‘Ye (formerly known as Kanye West) continues to purposefully use his platform to spew anti-Jewish hatred.
‘While some may dismiss his hateful rants, we cannot overlook the dangerous influence they can have on his millions of followers, particularly on social media, where a significant portion of today’s antisemitism thrives.
‘Hate, left unchecked, only multiplies. At a time when antisemitism is skyrocketing to terrifying levels worldwide, Ye is actively endangering Jews. We urge others with a platform like Ye’s – particularly in the entertainment industry – to call out this blatant hatred.’
AJC added that their soon-to-be-released State of Antisemitism in America 2024 Report, found that roughly seven in 10 (69 percent) Jewish adults report experiencing antisemitism online or on social media.
