Several leading mental health experts have denied that Kanye West<\/a> is an anti-semitic extremist – and instead claimed that his deeply offensive outbursts against Jewish people last summer were typical of many people with a bipolar diagnosis.\u00a0<\/p>\n The rapper, 48, who now goes by Ye, sparked global outrage last summer after releasing a song called ‘Heil Hitler’ and selling a swastika T-shirt online. He also made a string of racist social media posts about Jewish people who worked in the music, fashion and media industries.\u00a0<\/p>\n In January, he ran a full-page advertisement in the Wall Street Journal apologising for his comments and attributing his actions to untreated bipolar disorder, which he says was triggered in part by a 2002 car crash that caused frontal lobe damage.\u00a0<\/p>\n West claims the injury went unnoticed until 2023 and caused him to become ‘detached from my true self’ at times.<\/p>\n Since it was announced yesterday that West would not be permitted entry to the UK to perform at this summer’s Wireless Festival<\/a>, mental health specialists have come out to say West’s explanation is medically credible.\u00a0<\/p>\n Prof David Curtis, UCL Genetics Institute, said: ‘People with severe bipolar disorder can act in ways completely out of character.\u00a0<\/p>\n ‘They may become impulsive, reckless, or even psychotic. What Ye describes fits perfectly with a diagnosis of bipolar disorder and need not reflect latent antisemitism or extremist ideology.’<\/p>\n Dr Sameer Jauhar of Imperial College London added: ‘During a manic episode, it is possible to lose touch with reality entirely. People may do things they would never normally do. This is not an expression of belief – it is illness.’\u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Experts insist Kanye West’s behaviour last year was the result of severe mental illness, not extremist beliefs<\/p>\n<\/div>\n However, not all experts have accepted West’s reasoning for his deeply damaging behaviour.\u00a0<\/p>\n Bipolar UK emphasised that mania can make people act unrecognisably, but it is a symptom, not a choice. ‘There is no evidence to support the idea that people living with bipolar disorder would express racist or antisemitic ideas while unwell,’ a spokesperson said.<\/p>\n Yesterday, UK Education Secretary Wes Streeting<\/a> called it ‘appalling’ that West used bipolar disorder ‘to justify his actions’, while Labour leader Keir Starmer<\/a> said it was ‘deeply concerning’ he had been booked in the UK – to perform at the now cancelled Wireless Festival<\/a> in London<\/a> – despite his past antisemitic statements.<\/p>\n What is bipolar disorder?<\/span><\/p>\n Prof David Curtis explains that bipolar disorder is a severe mental illness marked by extreme mood swings, from periods of depression to episodes of high energy or mania.\u00a0<\/p>\n Some people may also experience psychosis, including delusions or hallucinations, though between episodes, mental health is often normal.<\/p>\n Severity varies widely – while some people have relatively mild symptoms, others can act in ways completely out of character, with impulsive, reckless, or even dangerous behaviour.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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