JULIE FROMM / ASST. OPINION EDITOR

The views expressed in the editorial and op-ed sections are not necessarily those of  The USD Vista staff, the University of San Diego or its student body.

The day  after the Super Bowl, I spent the afternoon scrolling through people’s thoughts on the outcome of the game and their reactions to some of the commercials. I was shocked to find a screenshot of Kanye West’s apparel website, Yeezy, and the singular product that he had  advertised following a Super Bowl ad for the brand. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing, so I decided to look on his  website for myself. 

The only product advertised on the site was a white t-shirt with a black swastika on the front of it. I was completely appalled and unsettled when I saw the shirt. After looking up the incident on other social media platforms, I quickly realized that few of the people I follow on social media were having a similar reaction, or even reacting at all. 

In recent years, West has taken to social media to express his often racist and antisemitic opinions and, after seeing the shirt he was advertising, I began to think about the celebrities that we place on a pedestal in our society. 

At the Grammy Awards, West and his wife, Bianca Censori, showed up to the red carpet uninvited, and Censori removed a black fur coat to reveal a completely sheer dress. California’s penal code, according to the Los Angeles Police Department, defines indecent exposure as “the  willful  exposure of one’s genitals in  a public place or in the presence  of  another person.” 

Censori’s dress displayed her breasts and genitals completely, and hundreds of cameras captured the moment and have since published the photos across the internet. 

Many people argue that West’s contributions to the music industry can be separated from his heinous actions, like being publicly antisemitic and advertising his wife’s body for the world to see, but I am not one of them. By attempting to separate the art from the artist, we offer celebrities a get-out-of-jail free card to say or do whatever they want, even if these actions put people in harm’s way. 

Last year, I read “Monsters: A Fan’s Dilemma” by Claire Dederer, a novel that addresses the question of how we are able to consume art created by monstrous people. I became obsessed with the question and began analyzing every celebrity that I’ve idolized. I also began to notice all of their failures as public figures.

West, in particular, was someone that I’d grown up listening to. But in recent years, I have been completely put off by his antisemitic comments and outrageous behavior. This wasn’t an isolated incident, though. I adored the movie “Call Me By Your Name,” but couldn’t enjoy the movie after finding out about co-star Armie Hammer’s abuse allegations. 

More recently, due to the conflict and allegations between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni following their film, “It Ends With Us,” I found myself only thinking about their ensuing court cases while watching the movie. As much as I might try, separating an actor or artist from their beliefs and values is impossible for me to do, and this has ruined so many of the things that I love. 

Many people would argue that an artist’s creations are not a reflection of  their actions. Though I can understand that someone might be able to listen to a song and not necessarily think about  the  artist performing it, I find it impossible to enjoy something while knowing  that I am funding the livelihood of someone whose beliefs go against everything I stand for. Not only does listening to an artist’s music or watching an actor’s movies further their careers, but engaging with their careers  also  continues to  excuse their actions or the horrible things that they have said. 

Cancel culture is a modern phenomenon, punishing  people, especially celebrities, for any missteps they make. However, “cancelling” people has become so commonplace that its impact is hardly felt anymore. It seems that every day, celebrities are  cancelled for something that they’ve said, and my hope for my idols dwindles every time a new allegation is brought to light. Due to the amount of cancellations occurring so quickly, the general public moves on from the scandals at warp speed, and most celebrities can continue their careers and consider their moment of public humiliation a minor blip in their careers. 

There is hardly ever any long term impact to the livelihoods of cancelled celebrities, and their actions are excused in favor of the art they create. If someone from the general public were to do or say some of the things that celebrities say every day, their careers would be over and they would likely be exiled from society for good. 

No one is perfect, but people like West, for example, who are openly antisemitic and create chaos wherever they go, are not the type of people that I want to look up to and hear about constantly in the news. 

West’s battle with mental illness has been very public and creates a barrier between himself and his actions that people often use to excuse his behavior. But that brings into question whether or not the general public will allow a public  figure to spew hatred and excuse it because of their mental state. 

Celebrities have their personal lives on display for the whole world to see, including personal problems like mental illness, and in some cases these problems allow people to take advantage of them, regardless of their wrongful actions. In my opinion, placing celebrities like West on a pedestal and excusing their actions for any reason is detrimental to the impressionable general public, especially young people seeking someone to emulate. 

Rather than feeding the careers of celebrities whose actions are harmful, the pedestals they stand on should be removed entirely. Acknowledging the fact that the black swastika shirt that West published on his website is completely unacceptable and hateful is the first step. Removing his ability to continue to spread hateful messages through social media and the news is the second. 

By writing this article, I am aware that I am giving some kind of leverage to celebrities like West and bringing  attention to their actions; but I hope bringing that attention encourages fans to consider the line between  an  artist’s creations and their inexcusable behavior.

Kanye West and his wife Bianca Censori showed up to the Grammys uninvited. Photo Courtesy of @yourlifeinplastic/Instagram