044: Mental Health, Trevor Noah, and Ye

Three days ago, one of my teenage boys asked me if I had heard that Ye (formerly known as Kanye West) was a guest on InfoWars. This far-right-wing political site espouses conspiracy theories and promotes non-factual news.

I had not known this, but I knew that Ye had been using his platform to spread anti-semitic propaganda and hate speech. My son expressed incredulousness that someone would not only believe the lies but double down on supporting a historical figure that caused so much damage to our world and people. 

As he spoke, I recalled a recent video in which an audience member attending a recording of The Daily Show with Trevor Noah asked the host, “Why are you beefing with Ye?” since Ye had directed racial slurs at Noah and commented on his ethnicity.

In response, Trevor Noah says, “I was never beefing with Kanye West. I was concerned about Kanye West <audience laughs>, and no, and genuinely, I mean this because if somebody says to me or to anyone that they have a mental health issue, and they say to everyone that when they don't take their medication, they're unable to control themselves. And then everyone ignores when that person is having an episode and they haven't taken their medication, and then they platform the person and then they put them out. I sometimes think it's a little s—--, to be honest with you.”

He continues to say, “What I have beef with is us as a society, not coming together around a person and going like, ‘Hey, maybe this is not the moment to put a microphone in your face so that you just go off saying everything.’”

I showed this video of Trevor Noah to my son. We talked about the fact that when someone admits they are taking medicine for mental health issues, they act in ways that harm themselves or others, do we elevate them, stand by, or try to intercede and protect them/hold them accountable?

As a result of this conversation, my son and I had a powerful dialogue about society, mental health, and our role in elevating or interrupting hurtful and uninformed speech and behavior. I share this conversation and video in the hopes that it might provide the same opportunity for you with your children or students in your classroom.