Kanye West is facing a lawsuit from a former Yeezy employee who claims that the rapper compared himself to Hitler, threatened her because she is Jewish, and fired her just a day after she reported his behavior to her supervisor.
The employee, named Jane Doe, filed her lawsuit in the Superior Court of Los Angeles County on Tuesday, February 11.
Doe started working for Yeezy as a marketing specialist in late 2023, around the time West apologized to the Jewish community in Hebrew for making several antisemitic comments, according to court documents obtained by PEOPLE.
After his “short-lived” apology, West allegedly launched a deliberate campaign to threaten and psychologically harass Jewish individuals around him, particularly Doe.
According to the court documents, West reportedly began calling himself “Hitler” and a “Nazi,” and he threatened Doe because of her Jewish background. He is also accused of insulting her multiple times, referring to her as a “bitch,” “ugly,” and using hate speech against her religion.
In January 2024, Kanye West’s album cover for Vultures Vol. 1 faced criticism for its resemblance to Nazi symbolism. Doe suggested that West should denounce any association with Nazism to address the negative attention, but West allegedly responded with, “I Am A Nazi.”
Additionally, in January 2024, the complaint states that West allegedly shared a nude photo in a group chat that included Doe, causing discomfort.
Despite feeling unsettled, Doe tried to overlook it amidst West’s continuous disrespectful behavior towards women.
The situation escalated when West made inappropriate comments to Doe and other co-workers of Jewish descent, leading to further distress. Doe took action by reporting the incidents to her supervisor.
In a group chat referenced in the complaint, West allegedly sent a Nazi greeting, stating, “You what’s left after I said deathcon,” amidst a barrage of profanity.
He had previously used the term “deathcon” in a 2022 tweet, where he declared, “I’m a bit sleepy tonight but when I wake up I’m going death con 3 on JEWISH PEOPLE…” Doe contended that West’s text constituted a direct threat against her.
The next day, on June 5, Doe received an email terminating her employment.
Doe is suing West for multiple claims, including discrimination, a hostile work environment, retaliation for engaging in protected activity, failure to prevent discrimination and harassment, breach of an oral contract regarding wages, negligent hiring and supervision, wrongful termination, whistleblower retaliation, and intentional infliction of emotional distress, among other violations of civil rights laws.
She is suing for an undisclosed amount higher than $35,000 and wants a trial by jury.
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