Kanye West sparks outrage with his "Black Lives Matter" message

Kanye West, the US rap star known for courting controversy and making money, has stoked a new wave of outrage, accusing Black Lives Matter of being a “scam” after he provoked online pushback by wearing a “White Lives Matter” shirt.

“Everyone knows that Black Lives Matter was a scam,” the 45-year-old entrepreneur said on October 4 in a deleted Instagram post, per Russia Today. “Now it’s over. You’re welcome.”

The statement was apparently a response to criticism that West received after wearing a “White Lives Matter” shirt on October 3 at his Yeezy fashion show in Paris. The show showcased Yeezy’s new clothing line and featured models wearing shirts emblazoned with the controversial counter-BLM slogan. For good measure, West was photographed alongside black conservative firebrand Candace Owens wearing matching shirts with “White Lives Matter” printed on the back and a picture of the Pope shown on the front.

“Kanye West's decision to wear a ‘White Lives Matter' shirt is disgusting, dangerous and irresponsible,” black author and professor Marc Lamont Hill said on Twitter. “Some of y’all will rush to defend him. You should ask yourselves why.”