by Debra Rich Gettleman

When I say Kanye West, what’s the first thing that comes to mind? Maybe I’m biased, but I’m guessing it’s antisemitism. Ye, the artist formally known as Kanye West, made headlines last fall when he declared that he was going “death con [sic] 3 on Jewish people.” But that was just a small sample of the remarks ye has publicly made over the years, not the least of which was endorsing Hitler for killing 6 million Jews in the Holocaust.

Well, the good news was that Ye paid a price for his hateful tweets and comments. Fellow celebs came out against the rapper/fashion designer. But the biggest hit was to his pocketbook when the German company, Adidas, cut ties with Ye and his newly manufactured Yeezy sneakers. With over a billion dollars of Yeezy kicks in their coffers, Adidas was in a quandary. Do they try to salvage the cash outlay and sell off the antisemitic shoes or just dump them in a landfill somewhere and try to move forward.

The decision announced this month to sell the shoes and share the proceeds with groups that fight antisemitism offers a unique solution. But is it the right one?

The sneakers are being sold online in limited quantities and part of the profits from the sneaker sales will go to the Anti-Defamation League, (ADL), one of the globes most powerful antisemitism combatants. Another organization who will get a share of the profits is Robert Kraft’s Blue Square campaign, part of the New England Patriots owner’s #standuptojewishhate organization.

Kraft, in a statement to the AP, described the partnership with Adidas as “a unique opportunity to raise awareness about antisemitism and all hate to a community that might otherwise not be aware.”

But forgive my skepticism. The Yeezy brand of clothing and shoes brought over $2 billion in sales to Adidas last year. And the truth is, Adidas only ended the partnership with West after enormous pressure from celebrities and Jewish organizations.

So, I have to ask, is this really about fighting antisemitism? To me, it seems more like a clever business stunt to use negative publicity to increase Adidas’ bottom line. I mean, they say a portion of the proceeds will go towards fighting bigotry, hatred and antisemitism. What portion?

According to my research, there is no fixed percentage of sales that will go to various anti-hate organizations. In a recent Seattle Times piece by David McHugh, it notes that Adidas is determining the amount of money it will donate based on what’s “appropriate” for each organization.

Bjørn Gulden, Adidas CEO, insists that selling off the inventory and donating to Jewish organizations is a win-win for everyone. But he’s quoted in McHugh’s peace as admitting that the Yeezy sales are “of course helping both our cash flow and general financial strength.”

This gives me pause. While many Jewish leaders, like Elliot Steinmentz, coach of New York’s Jewish orthodox Yeshiva University basketball team, have praised Adidas’ decision, it feels like Kanye and Adidas are scoring a “get out of jail free” card that allows both to continue to benefit from the sale of these tainted sneakers. According to Steinmetz, Adidas “is choosing the best way out of a tough situation.”

“They have every right to try and avoid losses and by donating profits to help raise awareness in the fight against antisemitism, they are choosing an acceptable vehicle for minimizing those losses,” said Steinmetz. “I’d say it’s a high five to Adidas for finding a way to foster positivity out of a negative business condition.”

A high five? Really? It feels more like a low blow to this journalist.