At this point, you’ve probably seen Kanye West’s string of antisemitic tweets and statements. West’s statements have caused him to rightfully come under fire. Some of the brands he was working with have cut ties with him, including JP Morgan Chase, as have even some of his friends. West, in short, was vilified by the media, but frankly, I think it was justified. There was nothing acceptable about West’s antisemitic comments, and this kind of thing should not be brushed off, especially when it comes from such a public figure. There is much, much more I could say about West and the things he’s said and the harm he’s done, but for now I will turn my attention to a different event.
On Monday, the Ohio University Barstool Instagram account posted a carousel. In the carousel was a picture of West with the caption “F - - - Miami,” falsely attributing the quote to him as a joke. To be totally transparent, I didn’t see the post. And, even if I did, I wouldn’t have cared. The sight of West does not offend me, especially because I know that this post had no ill intent. It wouldn’t have even gotten a second thought from me. It’s truly, honestly just a meme that included a picture of someone who has made antisemitic comments and there was no antisemitic statement attached to it.
And yet, it seems that despite having no ill intention and there being no antisemitic remark in the post, someone commented on the post or messaged the Barstool account. This prompted Barstool to delete the post and make a statement on their story, saying, “In regards to recent events, antisemitism is completely unacceptable. We do NOT support the antisemitic position of the celebrity quoted in our last, now deleted post.” The post then went on to profess its love for the Jewish students and alum who follow the account and pledge to do better. This is all well and good, but it seems like an overcorrection. There was no antisemitic part of the post, and West is not an antisemitic dog whistle.
This kind of overcorrection can only be described as bad. For one, it takes away attention from real antisemitism by blowing something not harmful out of proportion. When things are blown out of proportion, it makes the Jewish community look like we’re looking for opportunities to play the victim. Furthermore, when there is actually a real antisemitic incident, non-Jews will simply roll their eyes, assuming it was just another Barstool-posting-Kanye incident. Another troubling part of this overcorrection is that it makes Jewish students wary of antisemitism around every corner, causing fear when its unwarranted and makes people anxious to be visibly Jewish. The reality is that an “incident” like this is simply nonsense.
With all this being said, I want to make this very clear: I do not want an apology for the apology and I do not want a correction of the overcorrection. I don’t think the apology was necessary, and deleting the picture in the carousel would have been perfectly fine. I would warn us all to be wary of our political overcorrectness, as it actually does much more harm than good.
Hadass Galili is a senior studying political science pre-law at Ohio University. Please note that the views and opinions of the columnist do not reflect those of The Post. Do you agree? Tell Hadass by tweeting her at @HadassGalili.
