Jay Z has responded to the calls for him to end his partnership with Barneys, after the high-end department store was accused of racial profiling by two shoppers.
In his statement, Jay said that, while he opposes “discrimination of any kind,” he’s won’t make a decision about the future of the collaboration until after a meeting between community leaders and Barneys, because that would ultimately harm “all the people that stand a chance at higher education.” The rapper’s partnership with the retailer benefits his Shawn Carter Foundation, a charity that awards scholarships to students facing socio-economic hardships.
“If I make snap judgments, no matter who it’s towards, aren’t I committing the same sin as someone who profiles?” Jay asks in a statement posted over the weekend. “I am no stranger to being profiled and I truly empathize with anyone that has been put in that position. Hopefully this brings forth a dialogue to effect real change.”
Since made that statement on Saturday, the dialogue has certainly continued, with community activists like the Rev. Al Sharpton coming to his defense — while, at the same time, threatening a boycott if the retailer does not come up with an acceptable plan for ending discrimination when Sharpton’s National Action Network meets with Barneys execs on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, on Twitter, reaction to Jay’s comments have been mixed, with some expressing understanding, while others point out that, by temporarily siding with Barneys, the rapper is effectively turning his back on the community he came from — one that has supported him at every step on his rise to fame.
Others think that Jay is missing an opportunity to use his celebrity to elicit genuine change, and, by extension, is short-changing the power of the hip-hop generation to have their voices be heard.
At the same time, some fans continue to stand by Jay, saying that, by waiting to see if the accusations of racial profiling are true, he’s demonstrating patience, and not losing sight of the partnership’s true purpose: to help those less fortunate.
Some fans called on Jay to take a stronger stance against racial discrimination, in effect, to choose community over commercial interests.
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