Although each of us hates to admit it, something is alluring about an automotive accident or unexpected incident that causes us to strain our necks to capture a glimpse of what is occurring. Unfortunately for those of us who love Black people, one of our own has managed to turn himself into a twenty-car crash or, better yet, a living conundrum that offers not an inkling of there ever being a solution to this walking human problem. The individual that I am referring to is Mr. Kanye West.

Not a week goes by that Mr. West does not position himself as a veritable sideshow for on-lookers to gawk at and shake their heads in disbelief. If nothing else, Mr. West deserves credit for drawing the attention of fans and critics alike via physical appearance, public statements, or outrageous personal and business relationships. My parent’s generation would dismiss Mr. West as “just a hot mess.” Mental health clinicians consider Kanye a classic example of what happens when mental illness is left unchecked for too long. A process that is exacerbated when the mentally ill can surround themselves with enablers seeking to profit financially by allowing their misery to continue.

In the latest episode of this fool is crazy for real. Mr. West is publicly proclaiming, proudly, I might add, that he “has never read a book.” This declaration comes to the chagrin of Black educators who strive daily to push against the negative impact that illiteracy has on Black America. Making matters worse, Mr. West’s declaration indirectly mars the legacy of his beloved mother, Donda, an English Professor.

As if Mr. West’s prideful declaration of having never read a book were not enough for this week’s Kanye tragedy, he doubled down on his idiocy by informing the world of his plans to open a school, the Donda Academy, on land owned by hip-hop artist Young Thug; a figure currently imprisoned due to a host of criminal charges too numerous to list.

Unfortunately, one of the foremost consequences of Kanye West losing touch with reality some time ago is that he has lost any understanding of collectivism. Somewhere along the way, Mr. West, and those of his ilk, abandoned the classic hip-hop mantra of “we all, we got” in favor of a self-centered “I gotta get mine’s, you gotta get yours” self-serving Capitalist ethos. A position that weakens us all in the end.

I have tired of questioning if figures such as Kanye West understand how an utterance such as “I have never read a book” impacts, Black children. I refuse to spend a moment of my time analyzing why Mr. West felt the need to avoid reading or felt compelled to reveal this cavernous flaw for all to see. My efforts are better served by being aimed at making the world a better place for our children to flourish than seeking to unravel what is in Kanye’s mind.

Unfortunately, a portion of Black America has made the conscious decision to travel the same road that Kanye has chosen, meaning to avoid reading or illuminating the mind through something beyond a conspiracy-laced YouTube video or lowbrow podcast devoid of much substance. It is time that someone labeled such individuals as enemies of our people and efforts to liberate Black America. You know those I am speaking of; they are not indifferent to education but hostile to learning.

Trust me when I say that those who choose to travel down the road that Mr. West has admittedly traveled by shunning the gifts/talents and the work needed to hone those gifts will regret their choice. Unbeknownst to such people, the fact that America moved away from a manufacturing economy to a service and technology economy long ago is lost on them. The decision of segments of Black America not to adapt to these changes will be their death.

I am ultimately left with nothing more to say to Mr. West than the words of DeRay Davis in his best Bernie Mac voice,

Kanye, what the fuck was that…

James Thomas Jones III, Ph.D.

©Manhood, Race, and Culture, 2022

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