Kanye West Tells Jews 'Forgive Hitler' Amid Antisemitism Controversy

Rapper Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, has continued his antisemitic tirade by telling Jewish people to forgive Nazi leader Adolf Hitler.

West, who has been condemned over his repeated antisemitic remarks, doubled down on his praise of Hitler during an interview with Proud Boys founder Gavin McInnes in Los Angeles on Saturday.

McInnes, a far-right political commentator, suggested West had been "canceled" and mentioned comments he made during an earlier interview with conspiracy theorist Alex Jones.

During the interview, McInnes said: "You love Jews, but you're canceled for antisemitism because you also love Hitler, but you love everyone equally. Good guys and bad guys."

West, whose face could not be seen because he was fully masked, replied: "Yeah, Jewish people can't tell me who I can love and who I can't love. You can't say, you can't force your pain on everyone else. Jewish people, forgive Hitler today."

Hitler's Nazi regime oversaw the Holocaust during which more than 6 million Jewish people were murdered in concentration camps across Europe.

The rapper, who was flanked by white supremacist Nick Fuentes, repeated numerous antisemitic tropes during the interview, including the belief that Jewish people control institutions such as the media and banks, a cornerstone of multiple bogus conspiracy theories.

McInnes stated West's comments were controversial and added: "Hitler's got a pretty bad reputation."

West responded: "Well, who made that reputation? That was made by Jewish people."

According to the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), a Jewish civil rights group, antisemitic incidents have been on the rise in the U.S.

The ADL said a total of 2,717 incidents of assault, harassment and vandalism across the U.S. were reported to it in 2021.

Following earlier comments by West, on Friday President Joe Biden denounced antisemitism.

He said: "I just want to make a few things clear: The Holocaust happened.

"Hitler was a demonic figure. And instead of giving it a platform, our political leaders should be calling out and rejecting antisemitism wherever it hides. Silence is complicity."

While McInnes claims to no longer be affiliated with the extremist Proud Boys group, he has made racist remarks about Black people, Indians and Aboriginal Australians, as well as Islamophobic comments about Muslims, according to The Southern Poverty Law Center.

He has also previously flirted with antisemitism, including in a March 2016 interview with white nationalist Jared Taylor.

In it, Taylor referenced the name "Rubenstein," a typically Jewish surname, which led McInnes to place his fingers over his nose—making it appear larger—before adding: "Sounds like a…"

McInnes then clarified his gesture and said: "That is my Jew-finger thing."

He then tried to brush off the remark and claimed he was "kidding" and that neither he nor Taylor were antisemitic.

White supremacist Nick Fuentes, who has taken a central role in West's 2024 presidential campaign, moderated the interview.

Liora Rez, executive director of StopAntisemitism, told Newsweek: "Proud Boys founder Gavin McInnes giving Kanye West a platform is a pathetic attempt to stay relevant.

"Asking Jewish people to forgive Hitler is the true definition of abhorrent and those that continue to give this vile antisemite a stage to spew his hate are complicit in his bigotry at this point."

Newsweek has contacted the ADL for comment.

West's presidential campaign has suffered several setbacks, including the resignation of campaign manager Milo Yiannopoulos.

On Sunday, Yiannopoulos announced in a Telegram message that he had parted ways with West's campaign, just days after a disastrous meeting with former President Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago.

The far-right commentator said: "Ye and I have come to the mutual conclusion that I should step away from his political team. Ye is a genius whom I have come to love and respect. We remain friends. I will continue to pray for Ye and all his endeavors."

West was suspended from Twitter after he shared an image of a swastika inside a Star of David, a symbol used by the Raelian movement—a UFO religion.

New Twitter CEO Elon Musk clarified on December 2 why West's account had been suspended, adding: "He (West) again violated our rule against incitement to violence. Account will be suspended."

Musk had only welcomed West back onto the platform on November 20, following a previous ban over antisemitic comments saying: "Don't kill what ye hate. Save what ye love."

Update 12/06/22, 11:43 a.m. ET: This article was updated with comments from StopAntisemitism.