When
Many were overjoyed that West, the megastar from
"
And after he said it, this is what the media did not do: They did not call Kanye a "house negro" or say he was mentally ill. They did not say Kanye was illiterate. They did not say he was acting like a dancing minstrel show. And they did not withdraw his "black card."
He served their politics, and they loved him for it.
But as most of you know, Kanye met with President
The reaction from
"For those keeping score at home," tweeted
One of the attackers was
And
There was another
But cane or no cane, I'd pay real money to see Lemon and Dyson accuse Brown to his face of being part of a minstrel show or a ventriloquist dummy.
Brown's reaction would be fascinating. But I bet Lemon and Dyson wouldn't like it.
Kanye's long monologue, carried on national television, was a bizarre stream of consciousness. Some of it was wacky.
Kanye talked about parallel universes, and alternate realities, and his hope that Trump would pardon notorious Chicago Gangster Disciple gang leader
But Kanye also talked about the Democratic welfare state that has destroyed the black family, leaving generations of young men to grow up alone and fatherless.
Kanye also said he'd met with
Since the
One thing is certain. Americans make too much of celebrities.
But Kanye embraces Trump -- and gives him a hug -- and
Why?
Because there is nothing so threatening to the Democratic Party than a prominent
This they cannot abide.
The shaming of
Similar shaming techniques have been tried on other African-Americans, from brilliant writers such as
Each of them, in one way or another, had their "black card" revoked by the high media priests or priestesses who decide such things. Each was reviled, his or her authenticity questioned, condemned by some as race traitors.
But in the process, the inquisitors reveal themselves.
Because it becomes clear that what's important is not the content of one's character, but how the color of one's skin determines how one must vote. Those who use skin pigment to inform their politics are threatened by Kanye.
It's unfortunate that millions of young people don't idolize Williams or Sowell or the others I mentioned.
But young people do idolize Kanye. And
So, they shame Kanye and call him a minstrel.
This ugly business of deciding who gets to keep their "black card" of authenticity reminds me of another young political figure in
Kanye may remember him too.
Years ago, this other young
Rush had been a former Black Panther militant. But as he aged, Rush became a go-along-get-along guy, a soldier
The young politician was a threat to Rush, and as such, he was deemed not black enough. In essence, his "black card" was revoked by the
His name?
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John Kass is a columnist for the Chicago Tribune who also hosts a radio show on WLS-AM.