Eckburg: Kanye West’s supporters contribute to abuse culture in U.S.

Kanye+West+and+Kim+Kardashian+pose+together+at+the+red+carpet+of+the+Met+Gala+in+2019.%0A%28Photo+courtesy+of+Cosmopolitan+UK+via+Wikimedia+Commons%29

Kanye West and Kim Kardashian pose together at the red carpet of the Met Gala in 2019. (Photo courtesy of Cosmopolitan UK via Wikimedia Commons)

Bella Eckburg, Opinion Director

Editor’s Note: All opinion section content reflects the views of the individual author only and does not represent a stance taken by The Collegian or its editorial board.

If you’ve been on Instagram these last few weeks, you’re likely familiar with Kanye West’s rants about his soon-to-be ex-wife Kim Kardashian and her new man Pete Davidson, who West has nicknamed “Skete.”

Ad

Sure, on the surface, this is stupid internet drama — it’s really not important in the grand scheme of things. However, there is something to be said about how insane this behavior is on West’s part.

First, I want to note that I understand West struggles with mental illness and reportedly does not take his medication, but this behavior is rooted more in personality and arrogance issues than in mental health. 

West has repeatedly criticized Davidson’s joke on Saturday Night Live following West’s rant about Donald Trump, when Davidson said, “Being mentally ill is not an excuse to act like a jackass.” 

West argued that this was a joke against those struggling with mental illness, but it’s clear his misinterpretation of the joke is simply where the problem starts. 

Davidson is open about his struggles with borderline personality disorder — if anyone was going to make this joke on SNL, Davidson makes the most sense. It’s about West’s complete disregard of everyone around him and lack of empathy, understanding and blatant narcissism. 

This is less about West and Kardashian’s relationship and more about how women are treated in relationships. Domestic violence and abuse pick no sides. You can have all the power and money in the world, like Kardashian, and still be grappling with the downfall of a toxic relationship. 

Looking on West’s Instagram, where he spams posts aimed at Davidson and Kardashian before deleting them — likely because his public relations team is blowing him up with messages — he boasts about protecting his family from becoming broken while he continues to break it down. 

His comment section is filled with yes-men fans who applaud him for being real while ignoring the irreparable damage he’s inflicting on his ex-partner and children. West is a grown man and should be held accountable like one. 

“This is not the way you hold a family together, nor is it how we teach our children to treat their partners. When your partner has had enough, you do not get to force them into coming back to you because it hurts your ego and your image.”

There are four stages in a cycle of abuse, beginning with building tension. Kardashian filed for divorce following what we can only assume to be a tumultuous partnership as rarely seen on “Keeping up with the Kardashians,” the family’s reality TV show. 

Ad

After this, the stages include an abusive incident, reconciliation and then returning to normal, at least until the cycle begins again. 

For West, losing his family shows weakness, and he attempts to bully his ex-partner into getting back together with him, promising the public harassment and embarrassment will end when she does. Sound familiar?

If this were a normal couple outside of the public eye, we’d be offering support groups, recommending therapy and rallying around Kardashian as a victim of domestic abuse and harassment. 

But it’s all fun and games because it’s West, right? We’ve seen them in the public eye for years, and it’s just Kanye being Kanye, right?

Wrong. It’s horrifying that people are feeding into West’s abuse tactics, leaking into Kardashian’s comment sections and applauding West for trying to hold his family together. 

This is not the way you hold a family together, nor is it how we teach our children to treat their partners. When your partner has had enough, you do not get to force them into coming back to you because it hurts your ego and your image. 

“Abuse does not care about money or cars or power, and those who are supporting West in his insensitive and damaging tirade are contributing to a culture in the United States that makes excuses for grown men acting like children.”

This abuse is actively — and very publicly — spiraling. In West’s new video for his song “Eazy,” he literally murders a claymation Pete Davidson, buries him and grows flowers out of his head.

The video ends with West driving a black truck full of roses in the flatbed — a familiar image. West love-bombed Kardashian on Valentine’s Day, another abusive tactic, with a black truck bed full of roses and the words “My vision is krystal klear” printed on the side. West is insinuating that he is doing all of this for Kardashian’s benefit, but that’s clearly not what’s happening. 

If you’re supporting West right now, you’re part of a huge problem. Women are not objects nor trophies to be won, and West doesn’t seem to understand that. 

He has used Kardashian as an artistic object for nearly their entire relationship, claiming he is her personal stylist and she is his muse, and now that she’s leaving, he cannot stand it. 

This behavior is disgusting and inexcusable, no matter how famous you are. Abuse does not care about money or cars or power, and those who are supporting West in his insensitive and damaging tirade are contributing to a culture in the United States that makes excuses for grown men acting like children. West knows better. 

Reach Bella Eckburg at letters@collegian.com or on Twitter @yaycolor.