Kanye West sought a conversation with Rabbi Pinto in New York and cited his bipolar disorder as a reason for his past anti-Semitic comments.
Kanye West met with a rabbi to apologize for his anti-Semitic comments. The meeting with Rabbi Yoshiyahu Yosef Pinto took place on November 4th in New York. West cited his bipolar disorder as an explanation for his statements.
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“I’m really grateful to be able to sit here with you today and take responsibility,” he told the rabbi, according to The Independent. “I was struggling with various issues related to my bipolar disorder, so my ideas pushed me to extremes where I forgot about protecting those around me and myself.”
“Some people don’t know much about bipolar disorder.”
West continued: “That’s why I wanted to come here and take responsibility. Sometimes people don’t know much about bipolar disorder and its causes or how to behave when you have this illness.”
The rabbi then called West a “very good person” through an interpreter and hugged him. Pinto also later released a statement on Instagram: “A person is not defined by his mistakes, but by the way he corrects them. This is the true strength of man: the ability to return, learn and build bridges of love and peace.” He also shared a video that shows West and Pinto with their hands pressed.
In a statement accompanying the video of the two, Pinto said on “X” that Ye humbly sought forgiveness during the private meeting, which took place on Tuesday, and expressed “his deep remorse for his past statements about the Jewish people.” At the end of the conversation, Pinto wished the musician that only “strong and good things” should happen to him in the future.
Ties to Netanyahu, conviction for bribery
According to The Independent, Pinto, head of the Jewish non-profit organization Shuva Israel, is a prominent figure in Israel and has ties to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He was convicted in 2015 of bribing a high-ranking Israeli police officer and spent a year in prison for it.
In recent years, rap mogul Kanye West has made several anti-Semitic comments. Earlier this year, he sold white T-shirts with an image of a swastika on his website. In 2023, he said the Jewish community was holding him back. A year earlier he had called on Jewish people to “forgive Hitler.” He also said he didn’t believe in the term anti-Semitism and compared the Holocaust to pornography, as NME reported.
In October 2022, Twitter suspended the rapper’s account after he posted, “I’m a little tired tonight but when I wake up I’m going Death Con 3.” [sic] start against the JEWS. The funny thing is that I can’t actually be an anti-Semite because black people are also Jews. You played with me and tried to discredit anyone who opposes your agenda.” West later tried to retract some of the comments.