Lupe Fiasco has announced that he will be supporting Dr. Cornel West as he prepares to run to become the next U.S. president in 2024.
On Monday (June 5), the Chicago rapper took to Twitter to let his fans know that he wants to see Dr. West in the Oval Office for the next four years, while also revealing that this will be the first — and last — time he votes in a presidential election.
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“Cornel West For President,” he wrote. “This will be the first and last time I vote. [sunglasses emoji] @CornelWest 2024.”
The 70-year-old scholar announced his bid for presidency in a pre-recorded video on Monday, which he posted across social media. In the clip, West stated that he’s looking to eradicate issues such as poverty, mass incarceration, housing insecurities and health care inequities, to name a few.
“In these bleak times, I have decided to run for truth and justice, which takes the form of running for President of the United States as a candidate for the People’s Party,” Dr. West said. “I enter in the quest for truth, I enter in the quest for justice. And the presidency is just one vehicle to pursue that truth and justice — what I’ve been trying to do all of my life.”
Dr. Cornel West has had a storied career as a political activist, award-winning author and college professor at Harvard. He resigned from teaching at the prestigious institution in 2021.
Lupe Fiasco’s support for Dr. Cornell West isn’t too surprising considering he has been outspoken about politics and the circumstances that surround it through his entire career.
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In 2011, Lupe appeared on The Colbert Report and criticized the aftermath of Osama Bin Laden’s assassination, which took place under former President Barack Obama’s first presidential term.
“We got one guy,” the Food & Liquor MC said. As for his thoughts on what many pundits dubbed the “War on Terror,” Lupe said: “I don’t see an end to it. It’s not like it’s a war of attrition.”
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That same year, the “Kick, Push” rhymer made controversial remarks about America’s first Black President during an interview on Power 99 FM’s Mina SayWhat show.
“One hand, you have someone who is a great speaker, but kills little children — our president,” he said of his fellow Chicago native. “I’m not talking about an accident. I’m talking about ordering a drone attack. Ordering drone attacks that go and kill mothers, innocent bystanders, children. Militants too, but the collateral damage. You’re responsible for that, too.”
Lupe Fiasco also called Obama “the biggest terrorist,” which drew criticisms from Bill O’Reilly and others.
More recently, after Donald Trump won the presidency in 2016, Lupe sought to offer his followers hope amid the “doom and gloom” via an “unbiased” and thought-provoking Twitter thread.
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“To my fans who look to me for guidance in world & intellectual affairs who see Trumps victory as a loss for humanity i offer this POV,” he wrote.
“Will some straight up unfiltered racists feel empowered? Yes. Will that empowerment congeal in2 a new Nazi party checking muslims papers? No.”
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He added: “Whilst I do not believe it’s all doom & gloom I do empathize with your concerns. But I will ask you to rethink the reality of your concerns.
“Now is not the time to run & hide. Now is the time to educate yourself on the mechanics of fear, on the fears that we have & fears of others.”
