Wiley gives incendiary interviews to Sky News and The Voice Online, which depressingly suggests that some of Wiley’s views “are the great unsaid outside of the black community”
The antisemitic grime artist Wiley has given incendiary interviews to Sky News and The Voice Online.
Wiley has spent the last several days spewing antisemitic bile on social media before being locked out of Twitter, Facebook and Instagram following a global #NoSafeSpaceForJewHate campaign and mass 48-hour social media boycott, in which Campaign Against Antisemitism participated.
Wiley’s comments were condemned by the Prime Minister, the Home Secretary, politicians from across parties, celebrities and many others.
In his interviews, Wiley doubled down on his previous comments, describing Jews as rich exploiters and slavers, using classic antisemitic tropes and generalising about an entire ethnic group following an apparent dispute with his management team. Nevertheless, the intensity of Wiley’s vitriol and some of the conspiracy theories he espoused indicate that these are longstanding beliefs that have incubated over time, rather than comments arising from the moment.
In a depressing passage in The Voice Online article, the interviewer explained that he had set out “to find out what had triggered [Wiley’s] outburst and why he would make such sweeping generalisations against a community of people in such a scathing manner. These questions were not being posed from an ignorant perspective, some of the views espoused by Wiley are the great unsaid outside of the black community.”
The notion that Wiley’s views may be widespread in some communities is deeply concerning.
The writer went on to say: “Putting anything remotely near considered antisemitic to one side of course, in fact out the window in the bin, not too many seem prepared to vocalise their consternation for some of the recurring themes Wiley believes is the stranglehold one community seems to have over another in particular relation but not confined to, the music business.”
A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “Wiley appears to be on a quest to destroy his career and reputation completely. He has passed up opportunity after opportunity to genuinely apologise. Instead of showing genuine contrition or a morsel of self-awareness after a weekend of racist ranting online, including calling for a “war” against Jews, Wiley still appears to be convinced that he is the real victim.
“Now that his career as a performer is over and the social networks have finally stopped him from spewing hatred online, he must be stripped of his MBE and prosecuted. The message from the criminal justice system must be clear that those who incite racial hatred will face the full force of the law. Should the authorities fail to act, we stand ready to take our own legal action.”
Campaign Against Antisemitism has called for the revocation of Wiley’s MBE and for him to be prosecuted for incitement to racial hatred.
Campaign Against Antisemitism recently visited Twitter’s London headquarters to shine a light on racism.
