Patricia Grisafi
As the divorce drama between Kim Kardashian and Kanye West continues, with West acting erratically towards both Kardashian and her boyfriend Pete Davidson, Trevor Noah took a moment on The Daily Show to talk about why it’s crucial we pay attention to the Kanye West situation.
On Tuesday night in a monologue, Noah spoke about how the situation reminds him of the situation between his mother and stepfather.
While growing up in South Africa, Noah watched his mother be ignored and told she was “overreacting” about the abuse she was experiencing. Eventually, Noah’s stepfather shot her in the head.
“It started very much in the land of tabloid,” Noah said of the Kardashian-West situation, “but I feel it’s creeping and has crept into a world that more people should pay attention to but not for the reason that you may think.”
“You may not feel sorry for Kim because she’s rich and famous, because of the way she dresses, because she appropriates black culture, because she tells women they’re lazy, broke the internet, and then didn’t put it back together—whatever, you hate her,” Noah continued.
“But what she’s going through is terrifying to watch, and it shines a spotlight on what so many women go through when they choose to leave.”
Noah is of course referring to the problematic ways Kanye West is acting in public towards Kardashian, which includes harassment and also making threatening gestures to Davidson via a music video in which the comedian is decapitated.
“We have to ask ourselves questions. Do we wish to stand by and watch a car crash when we thought we saw it coming? Or do we at least want to say hey, slow down, let’s all put our hazards on because there’s a storm right now?” Noah stated.
“I see a woman who wants to live her life,” he said. “If Kim Kardashian cannot escape this, then what chance do normal women have?”
For his part, Kanye West responded to Noah in an Instagram post, calling him a racial slur: “All in together now… K–n baya my lord k–n baya K–n baya my lord K–n baya Oooo’ lord K–n baya.”