US athletes dump Kanye West’s sports agency over anti-semitic remarks

Aaron Donald, Los Angeles Rams defensive tackle, and Jaylen Brown, Boston Celtics player, have cut ties with Kanye West’s Donda Sports marketing agency over a string of anti-semitic remarks.

West, the American rapper who now goes by Ye, has come under criticism for making anti-semitic comments and also embracing a slogan associated with white supremacists.

The 21-time Grammy winner has been receiving an avalanche of backlash following the remarks.

In a statement co-signed with his wife on Tuesday, Donald said he was leaving the agency because the rapper’s comments go against everything his family believes.

He added that his family does not “belong anywhere near a space that misrepresents and oppresses people of any background, ethnicity or race”.

“Our family has made the decision to part ways with Donda Sports. The recent comments and displays of hate and antisemitism are the exact opposite of how we choose to live our lives and raise our children. We find them to be irresponsible and go against everything we believe in as a family,” the LA Rams player wrote.

“As parents and members of society, we felt a responsibility to send a clear message that hateful words and actions have consequences and that we must do better as human beings. We do not feel our beliefs, voices and actions belong anywhere near a space that misrepresents and oppresses people of any background, ethnicity or race.

“We’ve had the pleasure of working with many incredible people along the way and hope to continue to use our platform to uplift and support other families, children and communities through positive outreach.”

On his part, Brown said he could not coexist with “hate speech” while announcing the termination of his contract with Donda.

“In light of that, after sharing in conversations, I now recognize that there are times when my voice and my position can’t coexist in spaces that don’t correspond with my stance or my values. And, for that reason, I am terminating my association with Donda Sports,” he wrote.

The development comes hours after Adidas cut ties with Kanye, with the company saying it does “not tolerate anti-Semitism and any other sort of hate speech”.