Kanye West was relentlessly mocked by a new hashtag — #IfSlaveryWasAChoice — after saying on “TMZ Live” Tuesday that 400 years of slavery appeared to be “a choice.”
“When you hear about slavery for 400 years — for 400 years? That sounds like a choice,” West said. “You was there for 400 years, and it’s all of y’all? It’s like we’re mentally in prison.”
West later attempted to clarify the statement, tweeting, “Of course I know that slaves did not get shackled and put on a boat by free will … My point is for us to have stayed in that position even though the numbers were on our side means that we were mentally enslaved.”
The hashtag #IfSlaveryWasAChoice became the top trending topic in the U.S. just hours later. Read on for some examples:
I was told by AppleCare that I could come to America and not pick cotton #IfSlaveryWasAChoice pic.twitter.com/XSayClg3Kg
— Waiting To Oxtail (@CoreyPTownsend) May 2, 2018
Me seeking my slave advisor to explain career alternatives after 4 years on the plantation #IfSlaveryWasAChoice pic.twitter.com/LXpgxGPQDI
— conprehension is key (@MadeinBinjai) May 2, 2018
https://twitter.com/mattswaggster/status/991506735809662976
https://twitter.com/slaylerj/status/991526262672969730?s=21
https://twitter.com/ThatFakeHeaux/status/991503380693561344
When you got that notice that you're being freed but you gotta tell Massa something #IfSlaveryWasAChoice pic.twitter.com/YNFRPUg9Vl
— Dije lo que dije (@_ogkeish) May 2, 2018
https://twitter.com/AdventuresOfAda/status/991481658774781954
#IfSlaveryWasAChoice is like when folks start telling funny stories at the repast after a loved one has died, to help ease the pain of the loss.
Fare thee well, Kanye. pic.twitter.com/DlydIxHHjK
— April (@ReignOfApril) May 2, 2018
https://twitter.com/iamderickk/status/991504329168240641
And here’s an honorary mention not from the hashtag:
https://twitter.com/mat_johnson/status/991436117437272065