Kim Kardashian-West's Moment of Grace

When Kanye West journeyed to the dark side and became, of all things, a proud, vocal and very public supporter of Donald Trump it made me feel like a moron for spending well over a decade zealously defending Kanye as an eccentric, important and culturally relevant genius people should listen to and take seriously despite his flagrant jackassery. 

When people insisted that Kanye West and Kim Kardashian epitomized the vacuousness and spiritual emptiness of celebrity culture and were famous for nothing, or rather famous for being famous, my defense was that Kanye was famous for being one of the most important, relevant and adventurous artists of his time while Kardashian was a household name for being an extraordinary, exceptional beauty who built a billion-dollar fashion and media empire out of savvy and guile and comes from a remarkable family whose members include the most famous trans woman in the world in Caitlyn Jenner and one of the most famous lawyers of the past century in Robert Kardashian. 

You are certainly entitled to hate Kanye’s music, although it certainly seems like most of his most vociferous detractors have never actually listened to his albums, and despise Keeping Up with the Kardashians but it would be extremely wrong to assert that Kanye and Kim became famous for being born into a rich and famous family, the way Donald Trump Jr., or for that matter Donald Trump Sr,. did. 

There’s a woeful “journalist” most famous for doing a victory lap on Twitter after Anthony Bourdain’s suicide because the legendary author, chef and bon vivant was once critical of him on the popular social media site whose pinned tweet is all about how proud he is to have never watched even a single episode of Keeping Up With the Kardashians. 

That struck me as pathetic. It’s pretty fucking sad if you derive your identity from not being a viewer of a particular reality show. But it was also telling. There are lots of people who do not just dislike but actively HATE the Kardashians for a variety of reasons, most of them ugly and awful. 

The Kardashians epitomize celebrity culture and the triumph of the reality show but a lot of the hatred directed towards them is rooted inextricably in sexism, slut-shaming and racism. It has less to do with a hatred of fame worship than a deep uneasiness with the Kardashian women’s aggressive, unapologetic sexuality and very public history of dating, marrying and having children with prominent African-American men like Kanye. 

When beautiful people exceed a certain level of fame, popularity and wealth it can be hard to see them as human beings with dignity and emotions, or as human beings at all, rather than as abstractions who embody everything that’s wrong about our celebrity-obsessed culture. 

Kim Kardashian and Kanye West reached that level of fame a long time ago. As I have written about extensively, I identify with Kanye to the point that I wrote a fucking novella about his battle with Bipolar Disorder and how it relates to his support for Donald Trump and even I have difficulty seeing Kanye as a sensitive man who struggles with mental illness these days rather than a raging asshole who is continually saying and doing things that make it difficult, if not impossible to feel for him. 

So I was struck by the eloquence and sensitivity of a public statement Kardashian released recently about her husband’s Bipolar Disorder that read, “As many of you know, Kanye has bi-polar disorder. Anyone who has this or has a loved one in their life who does, knows how incredibly complicated and painful it is to understand. I’ve never spoken publicly about how this has affected us at home because I am very protective of our children and Kanye’s right to privacy when it comes to his health. But today, I feel like I should comment on it because of the stigma and misconceptions about metal health. 

Those that understand mental illness or even compulsive behavior know that the family is powerless unless the member is a minor. People who are unaware or far removed from this experience can be judgmental and not understand that the individual themselves have to engage in the process of getting help no matter how hard family and friends try. 

I understand Kanye is subject to criticism because he is a public figure and his actions at times can cause strong opinions and emotions. He is a brilliant but complicated person who on top of the pressures of being an artist and a black man, who experienced the painful loss of his mother, and has to deal with the pressure and isolation that is heightened by his bi-polar disorder. Those who are close with Kante know his heart and understand his words some times do not align with his intentions. 

Living with bi-polar disorder does not diminish or invalidate his dreams and his creative ideas, no matter how big or unobtainable they may feel to some. That is part of his genius and as we have already witnessed, many of his big dreams have come true. 

We as a society talk about giving grace to the issue of mental health as a whole, however we should also give it to the individuals who are living with it in times when they need it the most. I kindly ask that the media and public give us the compassion and empathy that is needed so that we can get through this. Thank you for those who have expressed concern for Kanye’s well being and for your understanding. 

With Love and Gratitude, Kim Kardashian West” 

I’m not too proud to concede that I responded to Kanye’s presidential run with exhaustion, disappointment, disillusionment but also some level of mockery. I feel betrayed by Kanye’s radical swing to the right and embrace of the deplorable likes of Donald Trump and Candace Owens but Kardashian’s deeply moving plea for compassion and empathy serves as a reminder that Kanye may be a billionaire, but he’s also a human being who is suffering and in almost inconceivable pain. 

Kardashian’s poignant, all too relatable statement allowed me to feel empathy and compassion towards Kanye for the first time in a very long while. She wasn’t just speaking for herself; she was articulating the emotions and concerns and pain of countless people like myself who deal with mental illness either because we struggle with it ourselves or love someone who does. 

If you can’t experience compassion or empathy for Kardashian because she’s rich and famous and beautiful and rose to fame partially due to a sex tape that ultimately says more about you than it does her. 

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